No Regrets
by RayRach2000
Summary: After casting a powerful spell as a last ditch effort to defeat the master of a dark guild, Lucy has only one year to live. Eight months later finds Lucy part of Sabertooth, and stronger than ever. As she builds stronger bonds with her new guild and repairs bonds with her old guild, things begin to spin out of control...
1. DescriptionForward

**No Regrets**

After casting a powerful spell as a last ditch effort to defeat the master of a dark guild, Lucy has only one year to live. Eight months later finds Lucy part of Sabertooth, and stronger than ever. As she builds stronger bonds with her new guild and repairs bonds with her old guild, things begin to spin out of control. Love and impending death move to the back of everyone's mind as the guilds team up to defeat a dark guild bent on bringing Zeref back to destroy the world. Loved ones are lost, bonds are tested, and everyone is pushed to their limit, but they all learn something important: When it's for those you care about, there are no regrets...

* * *

**_The Present_**

_"And, finally, Sabertooth!" the announcer cried into the mic, drawing back and clapping his hands over his ears at the roar of the crowd; the noise was second only to the tsunami of screams Fairy Tail had brought out._

_"They've really switched around with their Masters this year, haven't they?" Makarov mused softly to his guild members in the member-only area where those not participating in the Games would get to watch._

_"Yes," Mira agreed softly. "Sting, then Rogue, then Rufus, and now an outsider, Madame Wing. Of course, I suppose that was so Sting, Rogue, and Rufus would be able to participate this year."_

_Makarov grunted his agreement as the five mages representing Sabertooth, led by Sting, who had both arms in the air, stepped out onto the field. The elderly man's eyes roved over them; the spiky-blonde White dragon, the dark-haired Shadow dragon, the long blonde locks of the Memory mage, the short white hair of the Celestial mage, and a mysterious figure, covered from head to toe in a white cloak._

_For some reason, Makarov felt as if he knew this stranger, who leaned forward to say something softly into Sting's ear, which made the Dragon Slayer give a belly laugh before dropping his arms to his side._

_"What's this?" Elfman cried, from the stands, startling all of the Fairy Tail members - indeed, everyone in hearing distance of the large man. "Covering your face is not Manly!" he cried. "Wendy!"_

_Wendy, who was standing on the field between Gray and Natsu, Erza and Laxus behind them, shook her head furiously, blushing._

_"I got it!" Chelia, again representing Lamia Scale, took a deep breath and blasted a strong wind that ripped across the arena's floor, causing most everyone to stagger in surprise._

_Yukino, Makarov observed, seemed to start to reach up to hold down the hood of her comrade, but a hand - definitely feminine - appeared from the cloak, blocking the white-haired girl's attempt._

_Unchallenged, the hood fell back, the cloak billowing out from the girl's body like angel's wings._

_Cries went up all around as the wind and dust settled, but none were louder or more surprised than those from the Fairy Tail booth and team._

_"Lucy!?"_

* * *

**Pairing for this story: Laxus and Lucy (Eventually)**


	2. What Happened, Part 1

**I DON'T OWN FAIRY TAIL. **

**_Just so everyone knows, the italicized passage that was posted with the first chapter was a taste of what was to come. For this chapter, we went back in time a little..._**

* * *

**Eight and a Half Months Ago**

"I don't know, Natsu," Lucy said, biting her lip as she examined the request paper. "If we're not taking Wendy, Erza, and Gray along, this could be really dangerous. I don't know if I'm up for it..."

"Aw, come on, Luce!" Natsu pleaded, eyes shining with the excitement of the challenged. "If we take down this dark guild, we'll have enough money to completely pay off Fairy Tail's debts. Plus, it's really remote, so we won't create any more debts!"

The blonde looked at him skeptically. "You talked to Mira about how to convince me, didn't you?" she accused, and the Dragon Slayer drooped a little.

"Yeah," he admitted, and he looked so disappointed that Lucy, with a sigh, said, "Oh, why not! Let's do it."

"Yes!" Natsu jumped into the air. "The original Team Natsu is back!"

"Almost. Happy's sick, remember?"

"Oh, yeah..."

* * *

Not long after the blonde and the Dragon Slayer had left, Mira placed the request under the bar, too busy passing out drinks, making more, and cleaning up old messes to put it in the book of jobs. More than five hours passed before she was less busy, finishing up the last few glasses before closing time.

"Mira, dear?"

The white-haired woman jumped in surprise at Makarov's voice, turning to see him standing on the bar, looking concerned. "Yes, Master?" she asked, putting down the dirty glass and cleaning cloth in her hands at the look on his face.

"There was a job on the board, earlier. Something about the dark guild, Serpent's Fang?" the old man began, gesturing towards the board, where Nab was still hovering.

"Yes, Master," Mira agreed, fishing under the bar for the paper and handing it to the elderly man. "Natsu and Lucy took it, this morning. I daresay they should have arrived by now - Master?"

She put a concerned hand on his shoulder, for his face had gone quite white. "Where's Laxus? Where's the Raijinshuu?" he asked, faintly.

"Here, Gramps," Laxus, who'd heard the entire conversation from the S Class floor with his advanced Dragon Slayer ears, peered over the railing curiously. "What's up?"

Makarov held the paper up, still pale. "You must go after them at once," he whispered. As he spoke these words, his hand glowed slightly, highlighting a symbol in the corner of the paper that had been consciously hidden.

A bloodred S.

"This," Makarov said softly, "is the mission I was warned about a week or so ago, although it seems as if it's just shown up. According to the person who wrote the request, the people he asked to distribute it to the guilds weren't being truthful. The original request asked for at least three S class wizards."

Mira clapped a hand over her mouth. "Oh, no! Lucy and Natsu won't be able to...!"

Laxus swung himself over the railing, landing rather lightly on his feet right by the bar, and took the paper from his grandfather. "I'll go get the Raijinshuu and Erza, and then we'll head out," he said, flatly, but his eyes betrayed the same emotion in his grandfather's and the barmaid's:

Fear.

* * *

"Natsu!" Lucy screeched, as one of the guild members, a hulking brute even bigger than Elfman, slammed his fist into her friend, sending the salmon-haired man flying.

A small cry from her other side drew the blonde's attention, and her eyes locked onto Virgo just in time to see the spirit dissolve into nothing, the little corresponding key on the chain growing warm.

A grunt drew her attention elsewhere, and she barely managed to scream, "Forced Close! Gate of the Lion, Loke!" before another goon tried to eradicate him, just like the maid. Less than two seconds later, Loke forced his gate back open and used Regulus to send the goon flying into the cliff face, with crumbled and buried him.

"Lucy, we can't do this much longer!" Loke warned her, unnecessarily, as she rolled out of the way of an attack from a heavyset woman with black eyes and hair who was grinning creepily at her. Lucy and Loke both knew that this was the Master of Serpent's Fang, Frauchen Schlange.

"Natsu!" Loke bellowed, glancing at his master, who was obviously weak from having summoned himself, Virgo, Sagittarius, Aries, and Scorpio.

"I'm trying!" Natsu, surrounded by most of the other insanely strong members of the dark guild, screamed in reply, punching, kicking, and even biting left and right.

"Loke, look out!" the lion felt Lucy's little hands on his arm, shoving him aside, as she fell back. A shot of venom hit the ground right where they'd been, destroying the grass, dirt, and rock, and making a crevasse so deep that Loke's sharp eyes could see the molten material of the earth inside of it.

For the moment, Schlange was busy laughing at her success at terrifying her prey, and had turned to watch her goons continue to pummel Natsu, who was getting nowhere. She ignored both Spirit and girl.

"By the Celestial King's beard..." he murmured, looking up, his eyes locking with Lucy's, which were bleak with despair.

"We can't win this," she voiced softly.

Loke knew that she wanted him to agree with her, but...he hesitated, and her eyes locked onto him accusingly. "You know a way,"

With swift, cat like movements, Loke launched himself over the crevasse, to Lucy's side. "Nevermind what I do or do not know," he growled. "Let's just get Natsu and get out of here. There's no way this isn't an S Class mission."

"NO!" Lucy protested, yanking her arm out of his grasp and drawing Schlange's attention. "Loke, please," she said, in a softer voice. "If you know of any spell, you need to tell me. That's an order."

Loke paled; he could not disobey a direct order.

"I know of one spell," he said softly. "Using it, you could defeat not only Schlange, but all of her goons. It's a Celestial spell created by the King himself that locks onto dark energies. But...the price of the spell..."

"I'll pay any price," Lucy interrupted. "Here's another order: teach it to me." Loke looked pained, but he had no choice but to whisper the spell into her ear, touching her temple lightly. Where he touched her, light blossomed, and a white tattoo - a rose, petals not colored in - appeared there, engraining the spell into her.

Right before Lucy forced his gate closed, Loke murmured to her the price of the spell, hoping it would deter her. But, the lion realized he had lost when Natsu's cry of agony split that air at the same time that Schlange's poison splashed onto Loke's body, making him cry out in agony before vanishing.

With little hesitation, Lucy rocketed to her feet and screamed.

"King of the Stars, I call upon your might

Recognize this evil, and let out the Light!"

The tattoo on her temple glowed with blinding brightness, and a force not unlike an explosion rocked the surrounding area.

* * *

Evergreen was nearly thrown off of her feet when the ground jolted, and she cried out at the bright white light that burned her eyes.

She was not the only one in pain and surprised; Laxus, Erza, and the rest of the Raijinshuu (plus Wendy and Gray, who'd insisted on coming) felt the same thing. Poor Wendy did lose her footing, but Charla grabbed onto her, keeping her from hitting the ground.

"What the ever loving - " Laxus cursed, rubbing his eyes.

"What was that?" Gray echoed, in more polite language.

"I don't know," Erza murmured, "but, that's the direction of Serpent's Fang."

Wendy's chest tightened. "Natsu-san and Lucy-san," she whispered.

"Quickly," Laxus grunted, taking off in the direction of the light, the other Fairy Tail members on his heels.

It did not take long for them to reach the site of what once had been Serpent's Fang; the entire guild building was gone, leaving only the concrete foundation. A few marble figures dotted the landscape, and the mages realized with a jolt that they were Serpent's mages, petrified, some still in fighting stances.

"Are you telling me...they did this?" Freed whispered in shock, taking a step back from the scene.

The sound of shifting rubble drew their attention to a pile of brick and shards of wood - most likely pieces from the guild. The pile gave a great shudder, and the salmon-haired Dragon Slayer flopped out of it, gasping.

Wendy ran over to him immediately, horrified by what she found; Natsu so badly beaten that he could hardly even speak.

Erza and Gray rushed over, but Laxus and the Raijinshuu hung back, feeling as if this was a scene for Team Natsu that they should not barge in on. Laxus looked around, sniffing quietly, trying to pick up Lucy's scent; at the moment, he hadn't seen, heard, or smelled her at all.

"Natsu," Erza murmured, kneeling next to the injured boy, whom Wendy was working over frantically. "Natsu, where's Lucy? What happened?"

"L..ucy...did...th...is." the boy slurred in response, half conscious.

"Lucy?" Gray repeated, taking another look around. "You're talking about the Lucy who's house we break into all the time, who's writing the book, who's Levy's best friend, right?"

"Lu...cy," Natsu agreed.

"Good God," Laxus muttered, having heard the entire exchange. Met with curious looks, he muttered the conversation to the Raijinshuu, who looked just as stunned as he felt.

"Where's Lucy, Natsu?" Gray asked.

"Don't...know..." Natsu mumbled, his eyes drifting closed. "She...did this."

"Don't you dare fall asleep, you -! Bah," Gray spit on the ground. "I'm going to look for her."

A sudden breeze sprang up, and Laxus shouted, "No need, Stripper," before taking three long, running strides in the opposite direction of Natsu, jumping over a deep crevasse in the ground. Not far from this spot was a marble figure he recognized as the Master of the guild, Frauchen Schlange.

Not far from her was a figure, lying on the ground. At first, all of them had assumed it was another statue; but, Laxus realized as he got closer, it was actually their Celestial Spirit Mage, covered in white dust from the decimated guild.

As he knelt beside her, Laxus heard the hurried footsteps of Wendy, Gray, and Erza, and heard the Raijinshuu agree to Erza's demand to take Natsu to the train station and get them a ticket home; he would be okay for now, but he and Lucy both still needed to get back to Magnolia and Porlyusica as soon as possible, despite Wendy's abilities.

Laxus turned all of his attention to the mage lying on the ground in front of him; her chest moved slightly, so she was alive, but she had several visible injuries that turned her skin, clothes, and hair red, and she seemed to be completely unconscious.

With more gentleness than any of the others thought possible, Laxus scooped her up, cradling her head against his chest.

"No time," he grunted at Wendy, who was reaching towards the blonde. "To the train, first."

No one disagreed.

* * *

"You can be assured that this office is completely soundproofed," Makarov assured the blonde girl sitting in front of him. "Natsu has already informed me of all he knows, and has gone home to sulk at the fact that he couldn't defeat the guild's goons. Now, if you don't mind, tell me. How on Earthland did you manage to not only defeat all of the mages that Natsu could not, but also Frauchen Schlange, who is on par with the Ten Wizard Saints?"

Lucy, still exhausted from her ordeal a week ago, leaned back in her chair. "A spell," she replied. "I was so desperate to finish the fight, to get myself and Natsu out of there, that I forced Loke to teach me a spell he knew, one that would be able to do just that." With a tired gesture, Lucy touched the little white tattoo that had taken up permanent residence on her skin.

"What was it?" Makarov asked, with patience.

"Star King's Wrath." Lucy replied. "Informally, that is. It's called Deus lux Mea formally."

Makarov's brows furrowed. "Forgive me, but I'm not familiar with many Celestial Magic spells. Urano Metoria, I know. Others..." he trailed off.

Lucy stared out the single window in Makarov's office.

"Deus lux Mea is a spell created by the Celestial Spirit king. It is a Light spell that attaches itself to souls who have darkness in them, then destroys it, turning the body to stone. It is one of the most terrifying spells in Celestial Magic. It does not take much magic power, but it comes with a much greater price that deters people from casting it constantly." Lucy spoke with a detachment that worried her guildmaster, almost more than her suggestion of a high price.

"What kind of price, my dear?" he asked softly.

For the first time, Lucy met his gaze, and he was startled to find tears there.

"All but a year of the caster's life."

* * *

Makarov clutched the edge of his desk like a drowning man would a life preserver, or a floating piece of debris. "All...but a year of your life." he repeated softly."Oh, child..."

"I wish to leave the guild," Lucy interrupted him.

This new statement threw him for even more of a loop, and the man dropped his head into his hand, gathering his thoughts. After a moment, the only coherent thing he could say was, "Why?"

She took a deep breath, then let it out in a sigh. "I need to get everything organized. I want to visit my parents' graves and...set up a place for me, beside them. I need to find homes for my spirits. I need to pay off all my debts, sell all my stuff..."

"Are you sure?" Makarov persisted. "When I tell the guild..."

"Don't," Lucy replied quietly, and the tears finally spilled over her face. "Just tell them that I'm disgusted with them. Tell Natsu that I hate him for putting us in that situation. Convince them that I loathe Fairy Tail totally and completely. Make them let me go."

"These words will break their hearts even more." Makarov whispered.

"I know..." Lucy replied. "But it's what has to happen."

The tears fell down her face like a waterfall when he wiped her guild mark from her hand and led her out of the guild the back way, so she would not be seen.

All alone, again.

* * *

** I made very few changes in this chapter, because I was pretty satisfied with it. Obviously, Hiro Mashima owns Fairy Tail, and I do not.**

**Next Chapter: What Happened, Part 2**


	3. What Happened, Part 2

**Seven Months Ago**

_Dear Mother,_

_It's been a little more than a month since I left Fairy Tail. It seems like forever, because I miss everyone so much. As far as I know, no one has tried to find me; perhaps Master truly convinced them that I hated them. Part of me is glad, but more of me hurts, if it only took a few words from Makarov to make my family believe such lies, even of my own creation..._

_Oh, right. I'm part of Sabertooth now. It is too dangerous for a young woman to travel about alone - and I am alone, for I cannot bear to see my Spirits, nor can I give them away - so I chose to go to one of the most feared guilds in Fiore. Now, if people give me trouble, I simply show them the black mark on my wrist, and they back away. It is not how I want to live, but how I must live. I do not want to stay with them, anyway. Perhaps I'll go back, one day, but it feels so close to Fairy Tail...only two train rides..._

_I have to go now, Mother. If I wish to eat tonight, I must find a job..._

_Your loving daughter,_

_Lucy Heartfilia_

* * *

Lucy folded up the letter and swung the backpack off of her back, rifling through it quickly before finding the precious box with the other letters. Touching the paper to her lips softly, Lucy put the paper in with the others before stowing the box back in her bag.

She stood up, shouldering the bag and shuddering when she saw her hair swing over her shoulder; it was greasy and nasty, since she hadn't had enough money recently to stay in a hotel for any amount of time.

Lucy was hoping and praying that this province, Estrella - nearly on the opposite side of the country from Magnolia - was far enough away from what she was hoping to stay away from. She'd only been close to Fairy Tail twice - once when visiting her parents' graves and setting up a spot for her next to her mother, and once when she went to Sabertooth to ask for their guild mark.

Also, Lucy sincerely hoped that hotels would be cheaper, out here in the sticks. Or, at least, she could find someone who would take her in for the night.

As soon as Lucy stepped out onto the main road, she observed her landscape once again. She was in a valley, surrounded on three sides by shorter mountains, where little villages were scattered and sheep grazed on the hillsides. Directly in front of her was a huge mountain that seemed to touch the sky; she'd heard someone in a village she'd passed through before call it Vovin, and they seemed to have a great reverence for it.

Lucy sighed, hefted her backpack strap further up on her shoulder, and started to walk. It wasn't long after that she caught sight of a figure running her way, surrounded by littler figures. It took her a few more steps and a lot of squinting, but she finally realized what it was; a shepherd, surrounded by his sheep. She could hear him yelling now, partially to drive on the sheep and partially in fear.

With a surprised shout, she jumped to the side of the road to avoid being trampled by hooves. As the shepherd, a young boy, ran past her, he screamed a warning, "It feasts tonight!"

Lucy could barely hear him over the sound of hooves beating the ground and the frightened bleating of sheep, but she understood. She also realized something that should have been obvious before; the word vovin meant dragon.

Dragon.

Igneel.

Or, maybe Grandine.

Possibly Metalicana.

Lucy pointed her feet towards Vovin, and she started to run.

* * *

When the moon was directly overhead, Lucy reached the only cave on the mountain. Thanks to a flash of her guild mark and the keys clipped to her belt, a villager had told her, thinking she was going to drive the 'monster' away.

But that wasn't what she wanted. She wanted to talk to this dragon, not make it leave its home. Perhaps she could convince it to hunt elsewhere to prevent scaring the living daylights out of the villagers.

"I know that you know I'm here," Lucy said, voice shaking a little, as she stood in the mouth of the cave. "I don't mean you any harm, at all. I just want to speak to you."

No response.

"Igneel?" Lucy asked, and paused. When there was no response, she asked, "Grandine?" After another pause, "Metalicana?"

Lucy let out a breath of disappointment at the lack of response, and turned her back to the mouth of the cave, preparing to scale back down. Perhaps morning would bring better results...

_Do not leave, human_. A warm, female voice drifted out of the cave, along with a breath of warm air that forced the chill of night completely away from Lucy's skin, and made her sigh at the homey feeling.

"What is your name?" she asked, turning back to the cave. Now, she could see two blue orbs; eyes looking back at her in the dark.

_I am Estrella, and I am this province's namesake. I am the Dragon of the Stars. And you are a Celestial Mage._

"Yes," Lucy agreed. "The villagers are scared of you."

_I mean them no harm. I must eat, you know._

"I know."

_Are you afraid of me?_

"Me? No." Lucy smiled a little to herself. "I had three friends who were raised by dragons. The only one I fear is Acnologia."

_I fear him, too_. Estrella admitted. _Have you come here to tell me about the humans, or do other thoughts cloud your mind?_

"I..." Lucy hesitated, then blurted out, "Will you teach me Dragon Slayer magic?"

A low chuckled vibrated the rock around her. _Why don't you come in here, make yourself at home, and tell me your story first, little one. Then we will speak of magic._

* * *

Lucy finished her tale as the sun rose; from here, leaning against Estrella's golden scales, the blonde had a perfect view of the sunrise.

_I see..._Estrella mused. She was silent for a moment before she said, _I will teach you, under three circumstances._

"Just name them."

_One: you must reconcile with your Spirits. I have sensed the worry of Leo and Virgo in the night skies. The others worry too, although they try to hide it._

Lucy dropped her head. "I haven't been treating them right," she admitted. "So, I'll agree."

_Good...Two: you must participate in the Grand Magic Games this year. Which means you fight for the team whose symbol burns on your skin._

"When I go back to Sabertooth, I'll ask."

_Mhm. And, three: when you participate at the Games, you must reveal your identity. It can be at the beginning of the Games, at the end, or anywhere in between, but you must._

Lucy sat there in silence for a long time; long enough for the sun to start warming the valley, where shepherds started guiding their sheep. Someone galloped down the road she'd walked just the night before on a beautiful horse, whose bright coat combined with sunlight made him appear to be bronze.

"Alright," she finally agreed. "I'll do those things."

_Perfect._ Lucy could hear the smile in Estrella's voice. _Why don't we get started?_

* * *

**Two Months Later (Five Months Ago)**

Estrella's cave was very comfortable; further in, there was a hot spring where Lucy could wash herself and her clothes. Down in the villages, she could to odd jobs to keep herself fed. And, everyday, Lucy climbed up the mountain a few hundred more feet to a path that led to the other side, where she and Estrella trained.

The training was difficult, and Lucy's body, at first, hurt worse than it had after being pummeled by all of her enemies, combined, multiplied by ten, but it soon got better. It what seemed like no time, Lucy could even hold her own against Estrella, which seemed to please her.

_You learn quickly_. the old dragon told her.

"It is because I only have so long to learn it and then to use it." Lucy always replied.

* * *

"Estrella?" Lucy called, from the mouth of the cave. "I'm going to head to Sabertooth for a week. Don't forget that the villagers are having their festival on Wednesday!"

_I may be old, but I'm not that old_. Estrella grumbled. _Git, girl._

"Bye!"

* * *

The journey from Estrella's home back to Sabertooth - in a sprawling town called Lotus - was a lot more enjoyable to Lucy than the trip there. True, she still felt the guilt of what she'd done to Fairy Tail everyday, and it weighed down on her that she only had seven months to live, but she was so much happier with the old dragon.

As Lucy boarded the train to Lotus, she pulled up the hood of her white cloak. It was pure white, except for the designs embroidered on it in gold thread; around the edges of the hood and on the bottom of the cloak, which brushed the ground. Estrella said she'd been hoarding clothes for years, hoping that, one day, a human would join her and make her less lonely.

This was how Lucy had come across this garment, and the white tights, gold skirt, and blue tanktop that she wore under the cloak. Her keys were clipped to her belt, but their holster was soft white leather, with the design of a star surrounding the Sabertooth symbol.

It took two days to get to Lotus from Estrella, which gave her three days to visit before she had to board the first train back to her home. Oddly enough, she had started to think of Estrella as home. She'd come to love the tall mountains, the rivers snaking through the valley, and the people of the villages, who called her Vivon's Daughter and treated her almost like a god.

She tried to discourage this behavior, but the very least that they would do was bow and murmur a short prayer as she passed. She once made the mistake of calling out Loke while walking in view of a shepherd, and that solidified her godly status.

Oh, right. Her spirits. Of course, they'd all been furious initially, since she'd ignored them for a month (which was a long time to them), but soon enough they'd all started speaking softly, appearing at random if they could just to hug her or speak to her.

They knew that she was dying, even if she didn't feel anything.

Loke had appeared the most, talking to her about the spell and how it worked, in depth. She learned that he'd learned from the King that one would not start to feel the effects until their last month, when they'd slowly lose the ability to walk, talk, and move. Eventually, their lungs and heart failed.

Lucy and Estrella had a long heart-to-heart about this, and Estrella had given the blonde a potion of her own creation; one that would stop her heart the moment it touched her lips. It was in a small vial on the chain around her neck. It had quickly become a habit of Lucy's to touch the vial, as she did now. Loke disapproved of the vial, and seemed to glare at it whenever he was around.

"Er, Miss? Sir?"

Lucy looked up, startled, to see the conductor looking down at her uncomfortably, pointing at the window, which she turned her head to look out, finding that the train had stopped.

"I'm 'Miss'" she said curtly, standing up and scooping up her bag before walking past the flustered conductor, off of the train. She turned towards Sabertooth, Lotus's centerpiece, and started to walk.

* * *

"Sting?"

The blonde jumped a little and looked up from his drink when his dark-haired partner, Rogue called his name suddenly.

"What?" he asked.

"Quit moping," Rogue replied. "You're like this every few days, and Rufus is upset that you haven't been taking any jobs."

Sting snorted. "I still can't believe you stepped down as Master to let Rufus have a go."

Rogue rolled his red eyes and replied with, "I wasn't the best Master for Sabertooth, and neither were you. Perhaps Rufus has what it takes." Rogue cut his eyes down the bar, and nodded at the younger woman behind it. "Of course, Liza has offered many times to call for her mother, Madame Wing, who used to be the Master of a smaller guild that shut down not long ago..."

"That's why we haven't taken up on that offer," Sting pointed out. "We'd like to keep Sabertooth open, since it is home for so many people. And, a safety precaution for you-know-who."

"Lucy?" Rogue asked, then narrowed his eyes, dropping his voice to barely a whisper. "Are you moping over Lucy Heartfilia?"

Sting felt the blush start up across his cheeks, but he shook his head vehemently. "No. I'm just worried. Every single looter out there would think a lone girl was easy pickings."

"Sting, you saw her at last year's tournament; she would have beaten Flare if not for Raven Tail's interference. And she could have beaten Minerva, too, if the Lady hadn't been so underhanded as to steal her keys. I think she's fine." Rogue pointed out.

"Are we," Yukino started talking on Sting's other side, making the blonde jump again. "talking about our newest, mysterious member, Thea?"

"Thea?" Sting asked.

"You don't remember?" the Celestial mage - who'd become quite lively in the past few months - asked. "She asked us to call her something that was similar to her name. So, since her name, Lucy, means light, I suggested Thea. She was goddess of light in one religion or another."

"Thea," Sting tried out the name. "Hmph. Goddess."

Rogue was just opening his mouth to point out the far-away look in Sting's eyes when the front doors were flung open, hitting the walls with a bang, and revealing a slim figure whose body was mostly concealed by her snow-white-and-gold cloak.

The cape rustled a little before an arm appeared - the person's right arm - pointing at Sting, Rogue, and Yukino in turn.

A small, black Sabertooth stamp stood out in sharp relief against their pale skin.

Lucy - Thea - had returned.

* * *

"What a dramatic entrance," Sting commented dryly, as he, Rogue, Yukino, Rufus, and Lucy sat around Rufus' desk in the soundproof Master's Office.

"I was feeling rather dramatic," Lucy - hood down - shrugged. "After spending two months with a no-nonsense dragon, drama is lots of fun."

"Whoa whoa whoa," Sting held up his hands. "Go back. Dragon?"

Lucy grinned at him, showing off two sharp canines that she had acquired in the past few months. "I found a dragoness, Estrella, during my travels. The villagers protect me from outsiders as if I'm one of their own, because they think I'm a goddess of some sort." With a shrug, she said, "I tried to convince them to treat me normally, but they don't."

"What about your spirits?" Yukino asked.

"That's just the thing; Estrella is the Dragon of the Stars, or the Dragon of the Heavens. It and Celestial magic are a good match. I can still use my spirits, and my new magic." Lucy replied. "Although, Yukino, I wanted to give you these." With one, swift movement, the blonde girl unclipped a few keys from her belt. "I found Orion the Hunter, Aquila the Eagle, Pegasus, and Columba the Dove."

Yukino took the keys, eyes shining. "Wow," she breathed. "All of these are great keys, but Pegasus! Oh, I want to call him right now!"

"Later," Rufus said, in amusement. "Right now, we're in a meeting."

"Right," Yukino said, looking a little let down, but clutching the keys to her chest happily.

"Was there a specific reason you wanted to visit, Lucy? Or, perhaps, Thea?" Rufus questioned.

"You can call me Lucy in private, but Thea where someone might hear." the blonde clarified. "But, yes, I came to ask a favor." She took a breath and said, "When the Grand Magic Games return, I want to be part of Sabertooth's team. As for the other members, I was hoping that Sting, Rogue, Yukino, and you, Rufus, would join me."

Rufus smiled. "But I am the Master."

"And you don't want to be the Master," Lucy pointed out.

Rufus and the others looked started; the Memory mage did not, in fact, want to be the Master, but the others hadn't picked up on this at all.

"How do you - ?" Sting trailed off, then gestured at her.

Lucy tapped her head, grinning. "I'm good at reading people. Plus, one of the side effects of Deux lux Mea is that I can hear not thoughts, exactly, but...well, things that people are thinking about. I suppose it's because everyone wants to know how people truly feel about them before - ah, never mind."

"Hmph," Rufus tapped his own temple. "I'll remember that."

"You do that," Lucy grinned. "So, are you guys in?"

The four shared a quick look before grinning first at each other, then her.

"Let's do it."

* * *

** A few more changes in this chapter, but nothing major. I don't own Fairy Tail; Hiro Mashima does.**

**Next Chapter: Present Day**


	4. Present Day

**Three Weeks Ago**

"You miss her,"

Natsu looked up from the bar to Makarov, who was sitting two seats to his left on the bar.

"She left on her own," Natsu replied quietly. "She had a reason to go; Team Natsu put her through so many strenuous missions without ever once thinking about her feelings."

Makarov almost broke down then and there and told Natsu the truth, seeing how pained he was.

The salmon-haired boy had grown up so much in the past eight months since Lucy had left. At first, he was the same old Natsu, ready to move heaven and hell just to make her come back, but Laxus and Erza had basically kept him under house arrest in the Guild until he'd calmed enough to accept the blonde's decision.

Makarov had also seen her absence and the harsh lies she'd concocted in other members; Gray hardly ever picked a fight with Natsu, Juvia didn't stalk Gray, Erza went on missions for weeks on end without coming back, and Happy no longer tried to give Charla fish. Levy kept to herself more than ever, even when Gajeel cajoled her to join in some of the guild's activities. Lisanna, surprisingly, seemed the most upset; she'd burst into tears as soon as Makarov announced that Lucy was gone, and could not be soothed by her siblings or guild mates.

_Lucy, child, was this the right decision?_

The real deal breaker had come a month before; on a mission, a team from a new Legal guild, LionHeart, had sent Fairy Tail a message saying that a young girl of Lucy's description had been found dead not far from Crocus, Fiore's capital.

The news had sent the guild into a downward spiral, and Makarov had gone to examine the body, only to find that the woman that was to be laid to rest was many years younger than their Lucy. This, however, had not soothed any of his guild members, who all began to think that it was a strong possibility that Lucy was dead, since no one had heard from or seen her.

With a grunt, Makarov stood, growing to perhaps four times his size, before bellowing, "Now listen here, you brats! A decision is a decision, and we will respect Lucy's! Now, for the matter of the Grand Magic Games, to be held in a few weeks! I have already decided on the team. There will be no arguments, as this is my final decision! The team is as follows: Natsu! Gray! Erza! Wendy! Laxus! You have less than a month to prepare, so be ready!"

The five guild members all shared a look before Erza motioned to all of them, and they left the guild as a group.

"Good luck, you stupid brats." Makarov muttered to himself. "Good luck."

* * *

** The Present**

"And, finally, Sabertooth!" the announcer cried into the mic, drawing back and clapping his hands over his ears at the roar of the crowd; the noise was second only to the tsunami of screams Fairy Tail had brought out.

"They've really switched around with their Masters this year, haven't they?" Makarov mused softly to his guild members in the member-only area where those not participating in the Games would get to watch.

"Yes," Mira agreed softly. "Sting, then Rogue, then Rufus, and now an outsider, Madame Wing. Of course, I suppose that was so Sting, Rogue, and Rufus would be able to participate this year."

Makarov grunted his agreement as the five mages representing Sabertooth, led by Sting, who had both arms in the air, stepped out onto the field. The elderly man's eyes roved over them; the spiky-blonde White dragon, the dark-haired Shadow dragon, the long blonde locks of the Memory mage, the short white hair of the Celestial mage, and a mysterious figure, covered from head to toe in a white cloak.

For some reason, Makarov felt as if he knew this stranger, who leaned forward to say something softly into Sting's ear, which made the Dragon Slayer give a belly laugh before dropping his arms to his side.

"What's this?" Elfman cried, from the stands, startling all of the Fairy Tail members - indeed, everyone in hearing distance of the large man. "Covering your face is not Manly!" he cried. "Wendy!"

Wendy, who was standing on the field between Gray and Natsu, Erza and Laxus behind them, shook her head furiously, blushing.

"I got it!" Chelia, again representing Lamia Scale, took a deep breath and blasted a strong wind that ripped across the arena's floor, causing most everyone to stagger in surprise.

Yukino, Makarov observed, seemed to start to reach up to hold down the hood of her comrade, but a hand - definitely feminine - appeared from the cloak, blocking the white-haired girl's attempt.

Unchallenged, the hood fell back, the cloak billowing out from the girl's body like angel's wings.

Cries went up all around as the wind and dust settled, but none were louder or more surprised than those from the Fairy Tail booth and team.

"Lucy!?"

* * *

Natsu's first thought was, _That's not Lucy_. His second thought was, _Dear God, that's Lucy._

Before anyone could do anything else, Wendy was running across the field as fast as her little feet could take her, and leaping at Lucy. Sting, thinking she was attacking, nearly lit into the blue-haired girl, but drew back in surprise when he realized that the Sky Dragon Slayer had thrown her arms about Lucy's neck, and was hugging her tightly, crying.

Lucy, looking surprised, guilty, and pained all at once, hugged Wendy awkwardly before unwinding her arms and setting her onto the ground. Lucy glanced up at the rest of Fairy Tail's team, but was met with stares of surprise (Natsu and Gray), confusion (Laxus), and pure fury (Erza.)

The blonde dropped her gaze to Wendy and forced a smile. "Go back," she told the younger girl. "I...I've missed you all so much, but it really isn't the time..."

Wendy, brushing tears away from her eyes, nodded once before returning to her teammates' sides, much slower and with more reluctance than she'd left them.

"Ahem," the announcer cleared his throat. "Yes, well, that was...touching. If we can all put our emotions aside, please, then we'll jump right into the first events; one-on-one fights!"

Cheers went up around the arena, and those participating in the games puffed up, the guys showing off their muscles and the girls winking at men in the stands. (Besides all of Team Fairy Tail, and Lucy.)

"Pairs are as follows! LionHeart vs. Lamia Scale, or Marie Lu vs. Chelia Blendy! Mermaid Heel vs. Blue Pegasus, or Amelia vs. Hibiki! And, finally, Sabertooth vs. Fairy Tail, or Yukino vs. Wendy!"

Cheers exploded from the audience once again as the participants left the field, leaving only Marie (a summoner who called corpses to her aid) and Chelia.

Lucy, feeling the stares of her former guild mates on her, hunched her shoulders as she walked. When Sting and Rogue noticed, they moved to her sides, Sting throwing an arm around her neck and Rogue letting his hand drift out to brush hers supportively. Yukino bounced along after the three of them, tugging on Rufus's arm.

"If nothing else," observed Makarov. "Sabertooth is much more close knit than they used to be."

* * *

"Hey, Lily?" Happy prodded the black Exceed tentatively. "Who's that Exceed?"

"Where?" Pantherlily looked at Happy, then followed his paw to the Sabertooth booth where, as expected, Lector and Froch were cheering happily. It seemed, though, like they were being cautious; it was then that Charla said, "There, between them."

A small cat - probably only a few months old, Charla guessed - was sitting between the two, and Lector knelt down beside the furball and said something to it. A moment later, it started to cheer in a high-pitched, obviously young voice, then tried to spread its tiny, gold wings. At that point, Froch reached out and pulled the little Exceed to him, setting it on his head so it could have a better view.

"Look how adorable," Biska said, eyes lighting up, when she saw what the cats were seeing. "Look, Asuka, it's a little kitty."

"Kitty!" Asuka cheered

* * *

"So, what are you betting?" Sting asked, leaning against the railing and watching Marie and Chelia...well, like a cat watches a mouse.

"On the outcome of the fight?" Rogue asked, also studying to two young girls circling each other in the ring. "I'd say...Marie. Chelia has power, but Marie can summon quite a few corpses at the same time to swamp her."

Yukino made a face. "That magic's a little...gross." she muttered to Lucy, who just smiled to herself and leaned beside Sting.

"It's effective," she commented. "Not only is it terrifying enough to unnerve the opponent, Rogue's right; Marie could easily overwhelm her."

And, indeed, less than fifteen minutes later, Marie overpowered Chelia, earning five points for LionHeart. In a show of sportsmanship, Marie helped Chelia up and to the Lamia Scale team, both girls laughing all the way.

* * *

The next fight was over quickly; Amelia, who had the ability to change her appearance at will, turned into several beautiful women very quickly, mesmerizing Hibiki, who she then took out with a simple knock to the head that rendered him unconscious. Less kind than Marie, Amelia grabbed Hibiki's ankle, depositing him to his team with a flip of her hair.

Five points to Mermaid Heel.

* * *

"And, that concludes the proceedings for today!" the announcer cried, much to the disappointment of the crowd, who booed loudly.

"It's not my fault!" the man defended himself. "The teams all have to settle in and rest for tomorrow! First thing in the morning is the much-anticipated Fairy Tail vs. Sabertooth fight, followed by a most incredible second challenge! Goodbye and goodnight, minna!*

* * *

"Come on," Lucy murmured, to her teammates. "Let's get Lector, Froch, and Krysanthe and go to the hotel. I don't know if I'm prepared to face Fairy Tail tonight..."

"Like it or not, I remember a certain Salamander breaking into our hotel last year." Rufus commented.

Lucy just sighed. "I suppose that we should just go and get settled, then, before he gets there. By the look on Erza's face, she's going to be tagging along. And Gray. Probably Wendy. Maybe Levy. Oh dear, let's all just hope and pray they don't all come."

* * *

Lucy was sitting crosslegged on the floor in the main entry of the hotel that the large Sabertooth guild had completely taken over, holding Krysanthe (nickname Krys) in her lap and mindlessly playing with the Exceed when she heard the ringing knocks on the door.

"They're here," she called, but it was unnecessary, for Sting and Rogue had heard the knocks and had appeared at her side like phantoms, while Yukino, Froch, and Lector had been just in the next room, the library.

"Who's going to answer it?" the white-haired girl asked.

"I can't believe they knocked." Sting commented.

"I'll answer it," Rogue and Lucy said, at the same time. Brown eyes flicking to the dark-haired man, Lucy shrugged and gestured at the door.

Rogue reached the door in a few steps, and pulled it open only enough for his body to fit in the gap. Sting pulled Lucy to her feet, and Lucy handed Krys to Yukino, who hugged the little cat to her chest.

"Just let them in," she called to Rogue, who glanced at her once before taking a step back and opening the door.

* * *

Makarov was not so sure his children - some furious, some apprehensive, and some completely overjoyed - should go and see Lucy and Sabertooth by themselves, so he had told them that he would take the team participating in the Games, plus Levy, Happy, Charla, Gajeel, and Pantherlily.

When Rogue opened the door and peered down at the elderly man with respect, Makarov had to glance back at ten young people (and cats) lingering behind him. He had just opened his mouth to state their obvious purpose when a female voice called, "Just let them in."

At this, the dark haired man stepped back and waved them into the hotel.

Levy was the first one into the building, slipping easily around her guildmaster. As soon as she had locked her eyes on her best friend, she, like Wendy that morning, was across the room before even the known Dragon Slayers could blink, throwing her arms around Lucy's waist. (Where Lucy had grown to the point where she was as tall as Sting, Rogue, Natsu, and Gray, Levy had not grown at all.)

"Hello, Levy," The blue haired girl was moved nearly to tears at the sound of her friend's familiar voice and her arms wrapping around her to return the hug. "Um, you're squishing me."

"Sorry," Levy squeaked, jumping back from her friend and brushing tears away from her face. "It's just...God, Lu-chan, we expected the worse. We didn't expect you to show up again...especially not with Sabertooth!" Seeming to remember where she was, Levy blushed and apologized to Sting, Rogue, and Yukino, who didn't look bothered in the least.

"Lucy?"

The blonde swung her eyes up at the inquisition, and smiled when she saw Wendy. "Hey, you," she said, holding her arms out as an invitation for a hug, which the young girl happily accepted. "Sorry I chased you off this morning."

"It's fine," Wendy assured her, pulling back.

Next, the blonde was assaulted by Happy, who hugged her tightly around the shoulders, squishing his face into her chest, which made both Sting and Rogue growl threateningly, to the surprise of the Fairy Tail members.

Makarov greeting Lucy calmly, but with an unmistakable glint of joy in his old eyes. To the blonde girl's surprise, Gajeel greeted her warmly, with a, "It's been a while, Bunny Girl." Laxus even gave her a hug.

Which...left the rest of Lucy's old team.

Lucy was not at all surprised when Erza's greeting was a solid hit, a punch that would have sent her reeling before, but now made her cringe as the metal gloves the redhead wore dug into her arm, which she'd thrown up to block her face.

Sting nearly pounced on Erza, and both he and Rogue snarled in a way that made Makarov look at them in partial approval; at least they'd learned the value of family.

"If you're going to hit the members of our guild, I suggest you go," Yukino offered diplomatically. Erza just shot her a look before pulling Lucy into a bone-crushing hug, then bursting into tears before pulling back and hitting Lucy again, this time good-naturedly.

Gray hugged her like an older brother being reunited with a younger sibling, with a soft murmur of, "God, we missed you, Luce."

Last but not least, Natsu grinned, somewhat sadly at her, and said, "Since you've been gone so long, you must be stronger. So...fight me!"

"Not now, you dolt!" Lector scolded. "Participants in the Games fighting outside of the arena and a challenge get kicked out!"

Pantherlily and Charla couldn't help it; they both snorted in amusement.

"As rude as that was, Lector is right, Natsu," Lucy said, with an apologetic smile. "Perhaps after the Games?"

"After the Games...you're coming back to Fairy Tail, aren't' you, Lu-chan?" Levy inquired anxiously.

Lucy, mood shifting dramatically, looked down at the floor. "I can't, Levy," she said miserably. "I don't even know if I'm going to stay part of any guild after the Games."

Sting, Rogue, and Yukino shot her a sharp look, this being new information to them.

"But why?" Wendy demanded. "Please, Lucy-san; come home!"

Lucy looked even more miserable. "I'm sorry, Wendy, but my home is not in Fairy Tail or Magnolia anymore. Truthfully, it's not even in Lotus. My home is very far away...and it is where I will return after the Games."

"When are you going to tell us what happened, then?" Erza asked. "The things Master said you said made no sense. Even now, you greet us with kind words and open arms, so they were obviously lies, and I'd bet my good eye you made them up."

"Listen, we're all tired," Rogue interrupted. "How about this: tomorrow, if Wendy wins, Lucy will tell all of us everything. Is that okay with you, Lucy?" He glanced at the blonde, who nodded.

"But," Sting started, getting the idea. "If Yukino wins, she won't."

"And if we tie," Yukino added, "she gets the choice."

"You mean you guys don't know anything, either?" Gajeel asked, to which Lucy's three fellow guild members shook their heads no.

Just about then, Krys started to wail, drawing attention to herself for the first time.

"Lucy! Lucy!" she sobbed, waving her little paws in Lucy's direction. The blonde didn't even hesitate; she turned away from her friends and snatced up the Exceed, snuggling her gently and murmuring to her.

"Don't go away!" Krys wailed. "Don't go away, Lucy!"

"That's an Exceed." Gajeel said dumbly.

"Lucy...is that your Exceed?" Erza questioned, eyes wide.

"This is Krys," Lucy replied, still stroking the little white cat soothingly. "Yes, she's my Exceed."

"But only Dragon Slayers have Exceeds..." Levy stated. "Er, except Laxus."

(The blond man pouted like a small child and mumbled, "Everyone gets a cat but me...")

"Well, duh," Sting stated, holding out his arms for Lector, who jumped into them. Rogue smiled to himself when Froch hopped onto his shoulders. "Didn't you hear? There's no more 'Twin Dragons of Sabertooth.' We're the Dragon Trinity** of Sabertooth!"

Natsu's eyes widened. "Lucy, you're a Dragon Slayer!?"

* * *

***minna = everyone**

**** - This has no religious meaning. Trinity is only capitalized because it is part of a name.**

**A few more changes in this one, but the general storyline is the same.**

**Next Chapter: Fear House**


	5. The Second Day: Fear House

"Welcome to the second day!" the announcer - a different man, today - cried out, to the delight of the spectators, who had already spotted Yukino and Wendy in the ring, circling each other. "Let's hop right into this morning's battle," the man suggested, seeing the crowd's enthusiasm.

With the 'ok' from the announcers, the referee called out to the two young women, "Begin!"

With a flourish, Yukino pulled two keys from her belt. "Open, gates of the Hunter and the Fish! Orion! Pisces!"

With a flash of light, the three spirits appeared, Pisces in their human forms of mother and son, with Orion standing in front of them. Orian was tall and thin, but nicely muscled, wearing only a pair of ripped shorts, which seemed to excite some of the women in the crowd.

With a small motion of his hand, Orion drew the sword that was at his side, and the three spirits leaped at Wendy, Yukino following with the fleuve d'étoiles, a gift from Lucy.

Wendy, never one to back away from such a challenge, took a deep breath, letting it out with a violently loud, "Roar of the Sky Dragon!"

Orion jumped ahead of his companions, hefting his sword and slicing it through the rushing air, with parted around the hunter, Pisces, and Yukino, much to Wendy - and the rest of Fairy Tail's - surprise.

"How strong!" the announcer gasped. "Mostly the silver Celestial Spirit keys are overlooked, but Orion's strength is equal to one of the gold keys."

"Mama!" son!Pisces called, a spear appearing in his hand.

"Alright, son!" Mama!Pisces agreed, raising her arms as if trying to touch the sky before bringing them down violently, a flood of water exploding from the magic circle that had formed. son!Pisces twirled his spear, gathering the water up. With a sweeping motion, he forced the water away from himself in a jet not unlike Aquarius' attack from the Naval Battle the year before.

"Water Cannon!"

With a small cry of, "Vernier!" Wendy's limbs began to glow faintly, and she jumped upwards, in an attempt to dodge. Her body was clear of the attack when son!Pisces, swung his spear up, the water following, engulfing Wendy.

"He can direct the water!" the announcer cried.

"Look, there's Orion!" the referee shouted, pointing to the sky, where Orion was falling from, sword drawn. Wendy, caught and trapped by the water, flew up towards him, just as Orion swung his sword in a downward motion.

"He swung too early?" Erza murmured to herself.

"No!" Gray said, jumping to the edge of the booth to see better. "It's an attack using the air!"

And, indeed, Gray was right. The force from Orion's swing made the air cut through the water, Wendy plummeting back down to the ground.

Right before she hit the ground, the small girl flipped over and adjusted, landing on her feet in a crouch. "Arms!" she yelled, then swung her arm like one would to punch someone else. "Sky Dragon's Wing!"

Pisces, unsuspecting, cried out when the air sliced cleanly through their celestial bodies. Both gave a cry of apology to Yukino before vanishing.

"Orion!" Yukino called to the hunter. "Close gate!"

The hunter vanished, leaving just Yukino and Wendy, the latter forcing herself into a standing position with some difficulty.

"The time has flown!" the announcer cried out. "There are only five minutes left in this battle, folks!"

Yukino smiled to herself, then turned to Lucy to smile at her. (Lucy had happily agreed to help Yukino with Celestial summoning and working with her Spirits.)

"You're open!" Lucy screamed, as soon as Yukino turned her way.

The white haired girl, seeing her error, turned back too late, and was hit full force by Wendy's combination Roar and Wing, sending her flying into the arena's wall.

The next five minutes was a blur of movement. Yukino chose not to call out another spirit and Wendy dropped her supportive spells, both choosing to fight more hand-to-hand than with spells. Granted, Yukino did still have Lucy's whip, so Wendy fashioned one of her own from swirling air.

"Wendy's become so ferocious..." Natsu muttered to Gray and Erza, who nodded as they watched the little blue haired girl lunge towards Yukino, brandishing her weapon. Yukino managed to block, then got her whip around the Wendy's arm, flinging her across the arena, where she managed to skid to a stop before hitting the wall.

Just as the two mages made a threatening move towards each other, a bell rang out across the arena, signaling the end of the fight.

"Yukino got stronger too," Gray muttered, as the two girls, now smiling at each other peacefully, met in the middle of the arena to shake hands, then hug, before moving towards their team booths. Rather than go inside to get back, both just opted to hop up and go over the railing.

With the help of her magic, Wendy made it no trouble, whereas Yukino reached up her arms and was hefted into the booth by Sting and Rogue, who hugged her tightly before stepping aside to allow Lucy to do the same.

Meanwhile, Wendy's team nearly crushed her already bruised body with congratulatory hugs. She hadn't won, which disappointed the young mage, but, once again, she'd held her own and let her team gain points.

Fairy Tail and Sabertooth were awarded five points apiece.

* * *

"If each team could send out one representative, please." the referee announced, gesturing around. "If that person's already battled, I'm afraid they're not allowed to participate."

Two minutes later, the referee had his six contestants; Natsu from Fairy Tail, Jenny from Blue Pegasus, Jaime from LionHeart, Lyon from Lamia Scale, Milliana from Mermaid Heel, and Thea (a.k.a. Lucy) from Sabertooth. The seven people stood in an empty booth across from the announcers'.

"This challenge is very unique," the referee said to the contestants, although his voice rang through the arena. At the wave of his hand, the ground trembled for a moment before retracting, letting sand fall into the widening gap.

"What on Earthland?" Jenny wondered aloud, as a building, completely white, rose from the ground, filling in the gaps left by the floor.

"This is the Fear House," the referee smiled. "However, it's not your typical haunted house. This house will be totally attuned to the participants who enter. The building will even appear - inside and outside - like your home guild. Lacrima built into the walls access your memories," - surprised murmurs were exchanged throughout the guild members and spectators - "then find things that you fear, making them appear in front of you. Some of these things will attack you. Some will simply try to divert your attention so you can be attacked. Points will be calculated by how long you stay in the house. Less than a minute is no points. A minute to ten minutes is one point. Eleven to twenty is five points. Twenty one to the limit - thirty - is ten. The order of your participation will be decided by the first letter of your name."

A shimmering list appeared in the air above the arena.

**1\. Jamie**

**2\. Jenny**

**3\. Lyon**

**4\. Milliana**

**5\. Natsu**

**6\. Thea**

* * *

Natsu slowly edged closer to Lucy, who was still wearing her cloak, hood down and hair pulled back, revealing the little white rose tattoo on her temple. The blonde glanced at him, but allowed it, and the two stood side-by-side as Jamie (some sort of summoner mage who used cards) stepped into the house, which shifted to look like LionHeart, the symbol of the guild (somewhat literally, a roaring lion's head encased in a heart shape) painted on the doors.

Instantly, lacrima cameras sprang to life, screens popping up at random places in the arena to show the action inside.

Jamie stayed in the guild for five minutes, before fleeing from a horde of spiders, snakes, and a couple of what looked like angry villagers who were screaming insults at her.

Jenny was tormented by childhood memories, when she was just averagely attractive. Halfway through her eleven minutes in the house, Mira popped up. Well, actually, two Miras. One was in super-sexy mode, scantily clad, and the other was Demon Mirajane. Jenny was chased by these two for her remaining time, before diving out of the first window she saw.

Lyon, sadly enough, was tormented by Ur, who's face morphed into Deloria's, then attacked him. Lucy glanced up at Gray, to see him clutching the edge of Fairy Tail team's booth, knuckles white. Lyon lasted seventeen minutes before he, unable to hurt even this twisted form of Ur, was rendered unconscious from several crushing blows to the head and back.

Millianna relieved the torments of the Tower of Heaven. Driven to tears, she lasted only two minutes in the Fear House, and no one begrudged her for it.

After Milliana, an update of the scores popped up on the screens.

**LionHeart: 6pts**

**Mermaid Heel: 6pts**

**Lamia Scale: 5pts**

**Blue Pegasus: 5pts**

**Sabertooth: 5pts**

**Fairy Tail: 5pts**

"Next up!" the announcer began. "Natsu Dragneel, from Fairy Tail. It just makes me wonder what the legendary Salamander fears..."

With a small smile in Lucy's direction, Natsu hopped down from the booth and made his way to the Fear House, which shifted into the shape of Fairy Tail's magnificent building, the centerpiece of Magnolia. (Well, besides the cathedral.)

Lucy stepped up to the edge of the booth, now all alone, to get a better view. When she thought about what Natsu feared, her stomach dropped.

Whatever made Natsu afraid had to be horrible...

* * *

Natsu stepped into the guild, feeling a little like he was home, and more like something was wrong, since there was no one else in the normally rowdy guild.

On his guard, the Dragon Slayer slowly moved around the guild, looking around curiously when the room suddenly expanded so that the ceiling was so high and the walls so far he could not see them, even with his advanced Dragon Slayer sight. (The house only expanded on the inside.)

Suddenly, Natsu's reasoning completely abandoned him, and he found that this did not feel like a simulation from the Fear House; it felt real.

The guild went blurry, and shifted...

Natsu let out a horrific cry, and, if he'd been outside of the Fear House, he would have heard most everyone in the arena do the same.

The guild floor was covered in bodies. Bodies that Natsu knew.

There was Cana, very obviously dead, lying on the floor with all of her limbs twisted into unnatural positions, her neck broken

There was Mirajane, blood soaking her dress, reaching for Elfman, who looked like he'd been mauled by some kind of animal. Both he and his sister were reaching for Lisanna, who was slumped in a chair, glazed eyes staring vacantly at Natsu with a feathered arrow sticking out of her chest

Gajeel, Levy, Jet, and Droy were in the same area, the former two with their fingers entwined in a pool of blood. The latter two were a short distance away from the girl, as if they'd tried to protect her...

Natsu caught sight of Wendy, curled up in a corner clutching a white body - Charla - stained with red. He could not tell who had died first, and who had held that person to them, sobbing, before their own end came.

Juvia was on top of a table, stomach down, as if she'd tried to jump over it when she'd been struck, mid-air. Her blood pooled, then rolled off the table, drip drip dripping on the floor.

Natsu saw why when he hesitantly stepped around the table.

Gray.

The ice mage's eyes were opened wide in surprise, and Natsu could see why; a beam on the ceiling had broken and swung down, the force of the heavy wood driving it straight through Gray's midsection.

Natsu swallowed. It's not real. It's not real. he told himself. This is the Fear House. All you have to do is stay in here for thirty minutes so that you get the points. Just...

Natsu nearly lost this resolve when he saw Erza and Laxus; two of the strongest mages he had ever known, both now lying in pools of their blood mixed with the blood of their comrades.

Alzack was curled around Biska, and little Asuka was no where to be found. Vaguely, Natsu wondered if the Fear!House had allowed Asuka to survive since she was just a kid. But, he reflected, if that were so, then why Wendy, who was still, technically, a child?

Natsu nearly jumped out of his skin when the guild doors swung open, hitting the wall with a bang! He whipped around, not really expecting whom he saw. "Gildarts?"

Even as he spoke, Gildarts' face shifted, like his clothes and his hair, until it was not Gildarts standing before him, but a strange mixture of his friend and Minerva, who Natsu would know anywhere.

It was then that it dawned on him whose body he'd not seen - Lucy's.

Just as that thought entered his mind, the Lucy of his memories appeared, wearing one of her signature outfits, and with her pink Fairy Tail tattoo on her hand.

Before Natsu could move, Minerva/Gildarts screamed, "Lucy Heartfilia!"

"NO!" Natsu cried, taking a half step forward. But, he was too late; the black dagger buried itself in Memory!Lucy's chest, and she let out a small cry before falling backwards.

Natsu lunged forward to catch her, but the body disappeared right as his fingers touched the skin on her arm. Carried by his momentum, Natsu landed on his knees, and stayed on the ground.

Only when he heard a sweet, familiar giggle did Natsu look up, to find Thea/Lucy standing in front of him, dagger from Memory!Lucy's chest hanging from her fingers, still dripping blood.

"Hello, Natsu," she said sweetly, smiling...

...and then burying the dagger in his chest.

* * *

Natsu's eyes opened in shock, and he sat straight up, taking in the white floors, walls, and ceiling with some confusion before realizing that he was in the Fear House and seeing its true form. The blinking numbers that appeared in front of his face allocated Fairy Tail ten points - Natsu had stayed in the house for twenty one minutes and two seconds.

As he exited the building, to tremendous cheers and encouraging words from his guild mates, Natsu looked up at the scores.

**Fairy Tail: 15pts**

**LionHeart: 6pts**

**Mermaid Heel: 6pts**

**Lamia Scale: 5pts**

**Blue Pegasus: 5pts**

**Sabertooth: 5pts**

Slowly, Natsu's eyes shifted from the scores to Lucy, who was looking down at him in surprise. She moved her mouth to say something, and Natsu just barely caught it before the referee touched his arm and asked him to go back to Fairy Tail's booth.

_Good job, Natsu._

* * *

** A few more changes in this chapter, but not very many. I do not own Fairy Tail; Hiro Mashima does.**


	6. Mini-Chapter: Krysanthe

**Here's a mini chapter, on how Lucy met Krysanthe! As usual, I do not own Fairy Tail.**

* * *

"Ack!" Lucy cried, breath knocked out of her, as she slid back into the cavern wall with a crash!

"Gosh, Estrella, that really hurt." she said, after a moment, rubbing her midsection and arm, which were now patterned like Estrella's scales from the force of the dragon's blow.

Estrella chuckled._ You weren't blocking. I figured that you were inviting me to hit you._

"Oh, haha." Lucy rolled her eyes. "I guess I deserved that one. Are we going to go again?"

_I don't see why we shouldn't._ Estrella rolled her shoulders in the dragon version of a shrug. _Why don't you actually try some Dragon Slayer Magic this time? And, perhaps, we can discuss the Unison Raid that I tried to tell you about last night, when you were ignoring me._

"I fell asleep!" Lucy protested, holding up her hands defensively. "Geez, I'd just gotten back from Sabertooth when you sprang that on me!"

_Silly child._ Estrella teased._ Come now, though, please. It's time we get to work._

With a smile, Lucy stepped forward, away from the cavern wall, and took a fighting stance. "Here I come!" she warned her dragon-friend, taking in a deep breath.

"Celestial Dragon's...Roar!"

A blast of blue/black light scattered with white specks - like the night sky - burst out from Lucy's mouth, like Natsu or Gajeel's similar attacks. With a toothy dragon smile, Estrella batted the attack away not unlike a human would a fly.

With Estrella's chuckling in her ear, Lucy frowned and took a few steps back, rushing forward a few steps before launching herself into the air.

"Wing Slash of the Celestial Dragon!" Lucy brought her arms down in a sweeping motion, an attack similar in appearance to her Roar flying towards the dragon, slicing the air like a knife.

Estrella raised her foreleg to sweep it away once again, but her eyes widened when she finally felt the full power of Lucy's attack. At the last moment, she ducked away, allowing the attack to slice into the cavern walls.

_You held back on that Roar!_ Estrella accused, sounding partially miffed and partially proud.

"All's fair in love and war!" Lucy, still airborne replied, pinpointing where Estrella was in all the dust she'd thrown up by the sound of the dragon's voice.

"Celestial Dragon's Iron Fist!"

Estrella let out a roar that told Lucy something that made the blonde smile; for the first time, using her new magic, she had caused damage. Since she was so busy gloating, however, she did not notice Estrella's tail whipping through the air until it hit her squarely in the chest, once again throwing her into the cavern wall.

With a small cry, Lucy hit the wall, then fell a dozen or so feet to the ground, where she landed unsteadily on her feet. "Oww..." she gasped, rubbing her red, scale patterned chest.

_That was really impressive_. Estrella murmured to herself._ You're improving, Lucy. Now all you need to learn is humility; never be so proud that you drop your guard._

"After this," Lucy huffed, gesturing at her chest. "I think I got that."

Estrella laughed once again, and said,_ I think we're done for tonight. But, let's just stay here and we'll discuss the Unison Raid, like I said._

With that, Estrella dropped to her belly, curling her tail around her body. With a small smile, Lucy crossed the cavern floor and sat in her favorite spot; leaning against Estrella's chest with the dragon's tail wrapped around her, as well. It made her feel a little childish, but loved, and Estrella had been starved of love for so long that she didn't mind the blonde.

_Now,_ Estrella began._ What do you know about Unison Raid?_

"It's a spell that allows two mages with similar powers to combine their abilities and use an incredibly powerful spell. It's supposed to be difficult to master, but I've used Unison Raid with Juvia and Wendy, before. Juvia combined her water with Aquarius', and Wendy combined her wind with Scorpio's Sand Buster." Lucy rattled off.

_Indeed_. Estrella agreed._ Celestial Dragon Slayer Magic, however, is very versatile. It can be considered Light magic, Sky magic, Celestial magic, and Shadow magic, to an extent. Unison Raid with any of those types of mages would be incredibly easy for you._

"Light, Sky, Celestial, and Shadow..." Lucy mused. "Sting, Wendy, and Rogue I can see, but what exactly does Celestial magic mean? Could I Unison Raid with Yukino to cast Urano Metoria?"

_Yes, but it is broader than that. All of your Celestial Spirits use Celestial magic, so you could Unison Raid with any of them, as well. Although, considering the bonds you have with your spirits, Unison Raid with the Lion, the Water Bearer, and the Goat would be the strongest._ Estrella replied._ Perhaps tomorrow, if he's willing, Loke will help you try out a Unison Raid against me..._

"Would it be possible to do a Unison Raid with you?" Lucy questioned.

_Similar magic and the same magic are two different things. Although it is called Dragon Slayer magic, our magic is the same. I could slay a dragon with it just as you could. So, no, we could not. Although, a Unison Raid with Grandine could work. Or Sting and Rogue's dragons, although I believe they are deceased._

"Oh..." Lucy said. "Well, I'm tired, so I think I'll go to sleep now."

_Humans!_ Estrella exclaimed, somewhat affectionately._ All they want to do is sleep._

Lucy giggled. "Good night, Estrella."

_Good night, you silly girl._

* * *

When Lucy woke up a few hours later, a strange weight in her lap, it took her a few weary blinks to realize just what was sitting on her body. When she realized, she screamed, causing Estrella to wake with start.

_What on Earthland is wrong, Lucy - Did you lay an egg?_

"I - I don't think so!" Lucy stammered, staring at the egg sitting in her lap. It was smooth and white, with small, gold swirls covering it.

_I don't believe it - this is an Exceed egg!_ Estrella sounded surprised. _I knew they'd come to Earthland, but..._

"So this...will be my Exceed?" Lucy questioned, heart still racing a little from the earlier surprise of thinking she'd laid an egg in her sleep.

_All Dragon Slayers have Exceeds._

"Not Laxus," Lucy pointed out.

_Pfft. I bet that makes him angry._

Lucy cracked a little smile. "I've never asked."

As the two spoke, a cracking sound split the air, and both females turned their heads to look at the egg, which now had a long crack across the horizontal middle of it.

"It's hatching!" Lucy squeaked.

_Shh, you'll scare it!_ Estrella muttered, nosing the top of the egg until it tipped back, falling to the ground and breaking into a few more pieces before dissolving into a white light. The bottom began to glow and did the same, leaving a little ball of white and gold fluff sitting in Lucy's lap.

The little cat stretched and yawned, its little golden wings spreading limply behind it as it made a little, sleepy mewing noise.

It's big eyes opened - they were gold, too - and blinked sleepily a few times before locking onto Lucy's face. "Momma?" it asked, and Lucy realized by its voice that the cat was a girl.

"I'm Lucy," the blonde corrected. When a shadow - Estrella's head and neck - fell over them, Lucy gestured towards her and said, "This is Estrella."

The cat looked up at Estrella for barely a half second before it cried out, leaping at Lucy's chest and crying, "Lucy, Lucy don't let her hurt me!"

Surprised, Lucy held the trembling Exceed to her chest. After she and Estrella shared a look, the blonde said, "Now, now, Estrella won't hurt you. She's my friend."

The cat sniffed and looked up, meeting Lucy's eyes. "Friend?"

"Yes," Lucy assured the cat. "She's your friend, like me."

"Will you be my momma, too?" the cat begged Lucy, little paws reaching up to touch the blonde girls' face.

"Sure," Lucy agreed. "But if I'm your mother, I should give you a name. Unless, that is, you already have a name or want to pick your own?"

"I don't have a name," the little cat said. "Will Momma name me?"

Lucy sweatdropped. "If you'll call me Lucy, and not 'Momma.'"

"Ok." the cat said readily, nodding.

"Hm..." Lucy mused, observing the wide eyed little creature. "How about Krysanthe? Golden flower."

_Pretty_. Estrella commented, and the little white cat nodded her head in agreement.

"I'm Krysanthe," Krysanthe announced. "I'm going to be the happiest Exceed alive with my friend Estrella and my momma, Lucy!"

Lucy and Estrella's laughs rose and mixed in the large, warm cavern, and Krysanthe let her eyes droop shut, feeling safe and at home.

_Good night, Krysanthe._ Estrella said, a laugh still lining her voice.

"Good night, Krys," Lucy agreed, having already given the Exceed a nickname.

"Good night..." the little cat whispered

* * *

A few minutes later, if one had peeked into this supposedly haunted, dangerous cavern, they would have seen white dragon, white-and-gold cat, and blonde human curled up together, sleeping peacefully.

Lucy hugged her cat close, and dreamed of Fairy Tail.


	7. Announcement (July 9th, 2014)

Hello, everyone! It hasn't been that long, but long enough, I think!

As you might notice, I've started to edit 'No Regrets.' If you're new here, you've already read the chapters anyway, but if you're not, please go back and read everything, so you're not confused!

I don't know how everyone will feel about this, but I'm taking the 'Lucy is royalty' aspect out of the story. I know a few people thought this was too sudden, and, looking over it, I agree. Hisui and her family will still play a part in the story, but Lucy is not part of that family.

I hope you continue to wait for me!

(Although I understand if you don't.)

~RayRach2000


	8. Lucy's Fear House

**I do not own Fairy Tail.**

* * *

Lucy was not at all sure if she wanted to go through with this, even though she had to, since she'd volunteered. For one thing, living with no-nonsense Estrella had pretty much cured her fear of many things, and for another, the things she _was _terrified of...she'd already seen that the Fear House would show memories to distract, so what if the house showed _that _memory, of her speaking with Makarov?

Lucy stared at her feet and mulled over what she could be afraid of as she stood in front of the Fear House, letting it shift slowly into Sabertooth's main building. When there were gasps of surprise from the crowd, Lucy looked up, and paled.

The Fear House had not become Sabertooth, per say, but an odd mixture of Sabertooth _and _Fairy Tail. The Fairy Tail symbol was burned on the right half of the double doors, the Sabertooth symbol on the left.

With a swallow, Lucy pushed open the doors and stepped inside.

* * *

Now, the Fear House digs into your memories to find what you are most afraid of. For Lucy, she was not so much afraid of something that could hurt her, but something that she didn't want people to know. The Fear House waited to latch onto this, for, if it could torment her with things she wasn't quite afraid of, now, it would have time to find the thing that would paralyze her.

So, as soon as Lucy had entered the House and moved to the middle of the floor, a familiar hiss sounded behind the blonde, and she had sense enough to slide into a crouch, grab her cloak, and whip it around her protectively before a liquid hit it, sizzling. With a snap of the unharmed fabric, Lucy sent the liquid flying, and it burned holes into whatever it landed on. Knowing what she would see, the girl looked up and into the eyes of Frauchen Schlange.

Still crouched down, Lucy whipped a key off of her belt. "Open, Gate of the Lion! Leo!" Immediately after, she dropped and did a front roll. As soon as her back touched the ground, Loke appeared, feet flat on hers, and she pushed as he jumped, launching him at Frauchen Schlange.

"Oh, Regulus, grant me your strength! Regulus Impact!"

Lucy, on her feet again, covered her eyes at the bright light of Regulus. When it died down, Schlange was gone, and Loke turned to grin at her. "Thanks," they said, at the same time.

They shared a small smile before an enormous roar from behind Lucy nearly sent the both of them flying. Instinctively, Lucy leaped forward, hearing something crash into the ground behind her right after. She whipped around in mid-air, landing beside Loke, who reached out to steady her.

"Wyvern." the Spirit said, as the creature roared again.

"It stinks," Lucy muttered, under her breath, shifting into an offensive stance. "Ready, Loke?"

"How about you show off your new powers, Princess?" a new voice suggested, and neither mage flinched, even though - they couldn't see this - most of the spectators jumped.

"Hello, Virgo. Eager to get in on the fight?" Lucy asked, calmly.

"Eager to witness a Unison Raid, if you're going to try." Virgo replied. "May I assist, Princess?"

"Just stand back for the moment, Virgo. Loke, stay ready, yeah?"

"You say it like it's something I wouldn't have done on my own." Loke replied. "Go."

Lucy's eyes sparkled as she ran forward, stopping when the wyvern roared again. The blonde inhaled, rocking back on her feet. When she rocked forward, she bellowed, "Celestial Dragon's Roar!"

* * *

The attack ripped through the 'monster' with ease, and the crowd watching cheered loudly, as Fairy Tail watched on, fascinated, and Sabertooth swelled with pride..

"I knew that she was a Dragon Slayer...but wow!" Wendy breathed, as the dust cleared, revealing more 'enemies' in the Fear House for Lucy to fight, including one that looked vaguely like a mixture of Grimoire Heart's Kain Hikaru and Master Hades.

"I agree..." Gray said. "But isn't this Fear House supposed to target fears? Lucy doesn't seem particularly frightened of anything she's seen so far: including Master Hades and that guy from the 7 Kin of Purgatory who she fought on Tenroujima...Kain?"

"It's thinking," Erza commented, quietly. "It's trying to find the thing that will paralyze her with fear. Maybe for the others, it didn't take very long, but for her..."

"So she's...not afraid of anything?" Natsu tried to follow.

"She's not afraid of anything alive, I think." Laxus chipped in. "I think it's searching for a memory of something that happened...maybe something she doesn't want known?"

"Hm..." Natsu thought.

Gray cringed. "Don't hurt yourself, Natsu."

"What'd you say, Ice Princess?"

"Not here, you two idiots!"

*bang*

Wendy smiled sympathetically at her two team members lying on the ground. "You two know better than to fight around Erza..."

* * *

Because of the way the arena was designed this year, the guild spectators were very close to their teams, and Makarov overheard this exchange.

The old man crossed his arms over his chest as he watched the screen. _Lucy..._he thought.

* * *

"This is actually kind of fun," Lucy, in a sort of back-to-back triangle with Virgo and Loke. "I don't understand; for everyone else, there were genuine fears and challenges for them to face. What gives?"

"Oh, so you want to be terrified out of your mind?" Loke asked, sarcastically, as he roundhouse kicked 'Zoldeo/Caprico' in the head and straight into Lucy's Celestial Wing Slash that also took out 'Angel' from Oracion Seis.

"No, I'm just saying that this is _too _easy. Duck, Virgo." Lucy and the maid Spirit both ducked as one villain or another flew over their heads.

The girl and spirits moved away from each other, giving them room to turn. Lucy thought that the idiots they were fighting now were part of Eisenwald, although after so long, she wasn't sure.

"Princess is right, brother," Virgo commented. "I believe that the Fear House is - "

Virgo stopped speaking abruptly, but Loke and Lucy were too busy with Erigor to pay much attention. As soon as they'd defeated him, however, no more enemies appeared, and Lucy heard Virgo calling her softly.

"Princess, really, you should look!" the maid called out more insistently, and the pair whipped around to look at her, only to see another Virgo a few feet away scream and dissolve.

"Wha - ?" Lucy began to ask, but a realization that the entire half of the House past Virgo had turned into a forest, with a large building looking just inside the trees, made her freeze.

There she was, body partially turned towards Natsu, with Loke off to her right...

**(A/N: From here, in italics is what Lucy/Loke/Virgo saw in the House.)**

_A grunt drew the blonde's attention elsewhere, and she barely managed to scream, "Forced Close! Gate of the Lion, Loke!" before a mage tried to eradicate 'Loke.' Less than two seconds later, 'Loke' forced his gate back open and used Regulus to send the goon flying into the cliff face, with crumbled and buried him._

"_Lucy, we can't do this much longer!" 'Loke' warned 'her' as 'she' rolled out of the way of an attack from Schlange. A moment later, 'he' yelled for 'Natsu.'_

"_I'm trying!" 'Natsu', surrounded by goons, screamed in reply, punching, kicking, and biting left and right._

"_Loke, look out!" the 'Lion' stumbled when 'Lucy' shoved 'him' aside, as 'she' fell back. A shot of venom hit the ground right where 'they'd' been, destroying the grass, dirt, and rock, and making a deep crevasse._

'_Schlange,' laughing, turned away, seemingly ignoring 'them.'_

"_By the Celestial King's beard..." 'Loke' murmured, looking up, 'his' eyes locking with 'Lucy's.'_

"_We can't win this," 'she' voiced softly. _

'_Loke' hesitated, and 'Lucy' said, accusingly, "You know a way," _

'_Loke' launched himself over the crevasse, to 'Lucy's' side. "Nevermind what I do or do not know," 'he' growled. "Let's just get Natsu and get out of here. There's no way this isn't an S Class mission."_

"_NO!" 'Lucy' protested, yanking 'her' arm out of 'his' grasp and drawing 'Schlange's' attention. "Loke, please," 'she' said, in a softer voice. "If you know of any spell, you need to tell me. That's an order."_

'_Loke' paled. "I know of one spell," 'he' said softly. "Using it, you could defeat not only Schlange, but all of her goons. It's a Celestial spell created by the King himself that locks onto dark energies. But...the price of the spell..."_

"_I'll pay any price," 'Lucy' interrupted. "Here's another order: teach it to me." 'Loke' looked pained, but 'he' touched 'her' temple lightly. Where 'he' touched her, light blossomed, and a white tattoo - a rose, petals not colored in - appeared there, engraining the spell into 'her.'_

_Right before 'Lucy' forced his gate closed, 'Loke' murmured something to her. Before 'she' could close the gate, however, both 'Loke' and 'Natsu' cried out; the former from being hit by 'Schlange's' venom and the latter being overwhelmed by goons._

'_Lucy' rocketed to 'her' feet and screamed,_

"King of the Stars, I call upon your might

Recognize this evil, and let out the Light!"

_The tattoo on 'her' temple glowed with blinding brightness..._

_**.**_

_**.**_

_**.**_

* * *

The forest faded, leaving the Fear House in it's blank white shell, and Loke grabbed Lucy's arm when she collapsed, legs folding under her and arms bracing on the floor. Her hair swept forward to hide her face, but Loke was closer than the cameras, and could see her staring, wide-eyed and terrified at the floor.

"The time's up, Lucy." the Lion said, softly. "The challenge is over, you've tied with Fairy Tail, and the choice to speak is still yours." He pressed his lips to her forehead soothingly, before he began to glow. "I'll be there in an instant if you need me."

Virgo did not say a word but knelt in front of her master, touching her forehead to the top of Lucy's head for a moment before she vanished.

_Get up. They're watching. _Loke's soft voice spoke in her mind. _You won, Lucy. You had the best time and your team is tied with Fairy Tail. You did well, and now you need to get up._

Lucy took a deep breath and pushed herself to her feet, lifting her gaze to find it even with the doors of the Fear House. With steps that were at first hesitant and then became determined, she exited the House.

* * *

Rufus watched as Lucy stepped out of the House, squinting as the sudden sunlight burned her eyes. She seemed to be tensely waiting for something in the dead silence...

The crowd suddenly began to cheer, their voices rising in volume so much that the Memory Make mage was rather certain that it was even louder than the noise from the day before at the introduction of the teams, and Lucy relaxed.

Sting, Yukino, and the Exceeds began to cheer loudly, as well, and Rogue grinned in his own version of a cheer, but Rufus merely tipped his hat at the blonde figure making her way back to the group. Yukino elbowed him for this, but he shrugged; he was too bothered by what he'd seen in Lucy's Fear House to cheer for her just yet.

Quietly, he mulled it over in his mind.

_The price of the spell...what could it have been that her Loyal Spirit wanted to disobey her?_

* * *

**End of Chapter**

* * *

Participated in Challenges:

Fairy Tail: Natsu

Sabertooth: Lucy/Thea

LionHeart: Jamie

Lamia Scale: Lyon

Blue Pegasus: Jenny

Mermaid Heel: Milliana

* * *

Scores:

Fairy Tail: 15pts

Sabertooth: 15pts

LionHeart: 6pts

Mermaid Heel: 6pts

Lamia Scale: 5pts

Blue Pegasus: 5pts

* * *

Game Schedule

Day One: Introduction of the teams/One-on-One battles

Day Two: One-on-One battles/First Challenge - Fear House

Day Three: Second Challenge - Riddle Maze/ Pick-a-Partner Battles(1)

Day Four: Pick-a-Partner Battles(2)/Third Challenge - Find It

Day Five: Day of Rest

Day Six: Luck (Or Misfortune) of the Draw/Winners Declared

Day Seven: All-Guild Celebration/Fiore Day Festival

* * *

**This is really different from what it used to be, and, honestly...I like it a little more. What about you guys? Anyway, above is a schedule of what's to come; I'm sorry that I'm not very creative with the challenges/battles, but I really am trying my best. I hope you look forward to the next chapter!**


	9. Riddle Maze and Pick-a-Partner Battles

**I do not own Fairy Tail**

* * *

**Scores: **

**Fairy Tail: 15pts**

**Sabertooth: 15pts**

**LionHeart: 6pts**

**Mermaid Heel: 6pts**

**Lamia Scale: 5pts**

**Blue Pegasus: 5pts**

* * *

**Teams**

Team Fairy Tail: **Natsu**, Gray, Erza,_Wendy_, Laxus

Team Sabertooth: **Lucy/Thea**, Sting, Rogue, Orga(in for _Yukino_), Rufus

Team Mermaid Heel: _Amelia(Take Over/Shapeshifting)_, **Millianna**, Risley, Kagura, Beth

Team LionHeart: _Marie(Corpse Summoning)_, **Jaime(Ring Magic)**, Kris(Fire Magic), James(Music Magic), Liz(Earth Make)

Team Lamia Scale: _Chelia_, **Lyon**, Jura, Sherry, Yuka

Team Blue Pegasus: _Hibiki_, **Jenny**, Eve, Ren, Ichiya

_Italics = battled_

**Bold = participated in challenge**

* * *

"Lucy?"

The blonde opened her eyes when her mattress creaked, a weight on one side making it shift slightly. "Yeah, Yukino?"

"Can you scoot over?"

"Sure." Lucy turned on her side to face the other Celestial Spirit mage, then wiggled backwards, giving Yukino enough room to slip in beside her, the white haired girl lying on her side so that she could look at Lucy. "Something on your mind?"

Yukino got straight to the point. "After the day ended and we came back, you didn't talk to anyone. You hardly ate any of the food that Rogue made, and he's a great cook. Then, you came straight up here for bed instead of going into the library to read, or talking to Rufus. You ignored him when he called for you. What's wrong?" Yukino studied her friend's face, concerned. "Did it...have to do with your Fear House?"

Lucy sighed, although she was slightly amused at her friend's forwardness. "Yukino, you said that if you and Wendy tied, I could choose if I wanted to talk. You tied, I chose. I really don't want to talk about it." she replied, trying to sound gentle.

"So it has something to do with you leaving Fairy Tail." Yukino raised an eyebrow, and if Lucy's arms hadn't been under her blanket, the blonde would have face-palmed herself.

_Great, Heartfilia. Lovely._

"Yes, it does. But that's all I'm telling you."

"But, Lucy..." Yukino's eyes took on the wide, innocent look that Lucy had never been able to resist. "Don't you trust us? Don't you trust Fairy Tail?"

"Of course; I trust all of you. Don't think that I don't. It's just..." the blonde glanced away from Yukino, "there are some things that I can't talk about now. Not now, with only four months... - " Lucy clamped her jaw shut. "Anyway, not now. Good night, Yukino."

"Wait, Lucy - what do you mean 'only four months?'"

But, it was already too late, for Lucy had turned over on her other side and pulled the blankets over her head. As much as Yukino wanted to keep interrogating her friend, she realized that the conversation was over; Lucy would say no more.

With a sigh, Yukino slipped out of Lucy's bed and shuffled to her own. _We know something's up, Lucy...and sooner or later, we're going to figure it out._

* * *

_Creak_

Makarov looked up from his desk overlooking Crocus, and, staring out at the night, said, "Laxus, what on Earthland are you doing in my room and two o'clock in the morning? You might have to compete tomorrow."

"I want to know what happened, Gramps." the reply came, and the elder man heard the loud squealing of springs in the chair next to his desk as his grandson's large weight settled into it. "And don't scold me about staying up late; you're up too."

With a sigh, Makarov looked to his right, meeting Laxus' blue eyes. "Know what happened, when, boy? I'm old and my memory's not that good anymore."

"You know exactly what I'm talking about." Laxus snorted. "What happened, today, in Blondie's Fear House. What she saw at the end was right before the Raijinshuu, team Natsu, and I found her...and the Salamander. Less than a week after that - she was gone. And I think it has to do with the spell Loke taught her."

"That story is not mine to tell." Makarov turned back to his desk and paperwork.

"But Blondie sure as hell ain't talking, and I'm guessing that other than her Spirits, you're the only one who knows."

"She has her reasons, Laxus, and I won't betray her trust."

Laxus grunted irritably and stood, chair springs squealing again. "Whatever, old man, but if you're not coughing anything up, I'll just have to do some research."

Makarov grinned to himself as his grandson's footsteps retreated. "Research, Laxus?"

"I'm not the only one who wants to know. I happen to know that Levy is curious, and, in fact, she and Wendy went to Crocus Library after today's challenge ended. We're going to find out - sooner or later."

* * *

The next morning, as Fairy Tail was preparing to head to the Games' arena, Levy disappeared. Gajeel, Jet, and Droy - a reluctant team - headed into Crocus at the Master's request, even though all three - plus pretty much all of the other members - knew exactly where she was.

All the way across town at Sabertooth's hotel, Yukino also vanished, and, with the guild in a panic, Orga stepped in to cover for her, while a few other guild members went to search for her. They were intercepted by the three Fairy Tail boys searching for Levy, and ended up back in the hotel, knocked out cold.

That done, Gajeel and Team Shadowgear (minus Levy) headed towards the arena.

* * *

As Yukino sat the heavy volume down with a huff, Levy closed the book she had with a sigh.

"Nothing?" the white-haired girl asked.

"Nothing, but I think that those books that you've brought over are promising," the bluenette replied. "_Ancient Celestial Magic_, _Spells of the Stars_, and _Celestial Spirit Magic for Beginners._"

Yukino sat down beside Levy and pulled _Ancient Celestial Magic _towards her, while her companion chose _Celestial Spirit Magic for Beginners._

"Let's get to it."

* * *

"Dear God," Lucy's eyes grew as wide as saucers, and she leaned back, craning her neck in an attempt to get a good look at the twenty story - she'd counted; each story was clearly defined by a different color or pattern of building material - tower in the middle of the arena, casting a large shadow on a sliver of the crowd. "What the hell is that?"

"I think that might be today's challenge," Rogue replied, leaning past the rail as if trying to get a better look at the structure. "How'd they put it up with no one noticing? It's taller than the arena."

"Riddle Maze," Rufus said, and his four teammates looked at him, puzzled.

"What?" Orga asked.

The Memory Make mage rolled his eyes and pointed. There, on the side of the tower, were the words 'Riddle Maze.' "I was answering Lucy - Thea's - question. "_That _is, apparently, a riddle maze."

"Huh." Sting said.

"Not it," Orga crossed his arms over his chest.

Lucy snorted. "What, Orga? Afraid of some riddles?"

The green-haired man glared at the blonde. "Shaddup."

* * *

"Welcome to the third day, everyone!" the announcer cried, to cheering. Honestly, the poor man was almost tired of three days of continuous screaming. However, he plastered a smile on his face and continued, "Today, we're starting off with the next challenge: The Riddle Maze! Teams, if you could please send your representatives down to the arena floor!"

Instantly, Rufus hopped down into the arena, striding over to the referee. It seemed that Sabertooth had been the only ones to see the name of the challenge on the building itself, for the other guilds debated before sending in their representatives.

"Okay, we've got all of our participants! Wendy Marvell from Fairy Tail! Rufus Lore from Sabertooth! Liz from LionHeart! Beth from Mermaid Heel! Yuka from Lamia Scale! And, last but not least, Hibiki from Blue Pegasus!" The announcer waited for the cheers - sigh - to die down before saying, "Ref, if you'll please explain!"

The referee nodded. "Listen up, participants! Being a great guild isn't all about strength! In this challenge, you are all going to race up to the top floor of the Riddle Maze! First, you must find your way to the door leading to the next floor, which changes location every time someone else goes through. Secondly, to get through the door, you must correctly answer a riddle. Keep in mind, though, you have three strikes; if you answer incorrectly three times you will be sent back to the first floor, and all of the riddles will change. I'd like to stress that you can only go through a door if _you _have answered the riddle."

The ref took a deep breath, and waited until the participants all seemed to be caught up before he continued.

"Right. Now, on the top floor are five flags: gold(5pts), silver(4pts), bronze(3pts), gray(2pts), and white(1pt). The first person to the top will take the gold flag, the second will take the silver, and so forth. The flag you get coordinates to how many points you get. If, after one hour, more than one person has not completed the maze, those who are left will automatically get no points. Is everyone ready?"

Once he had a nod from all six, he positioned them around the base of the tower, in front of a door. Right before he blew the whistle that would open the doors, he shouted, "Oh, right, I forgot to mention it! You cannot use magic in the maze!"

"Wait, what - !" LionHeart's participant, Liz, started to protest, but the shrill sound of the whistle split the air, and she was forced to dive into the maze, lest she be left behind.

* * *

"Rufus is going to find a door first." Lucy predicted, and no sooner had the words left her lips did Rufus - on the lacrima-vision screen - turn a corner and find himself face-to-face with a door.

The mage reached out to touch the doorknob, and, when he did, a disembodied voice said, _Some are quick to take it, others must be coaxed. Those who chose to take it gain and lose the most. What is it?_

Rufus smiled, and, hardly missing a beat, said, "Risk." There was a small _ding _and the door opened, allowing him to go through. As soon as it shut, it vanished, and the black Sabertooth emblem that was being projected onto the side of the tower moved up to the second level.

A few seconds later, Wendy appeared on the lacrima-vision screen. _What can you catch but not throw? _the door before her asked.

The girl blinked at the door for a moment, huffed, and - eyes widening - proclaimed, "Your breath!"

The door swung open, and she darted through. Right before it shut, however, Hibiki tried to slide through it after her. The tower buzzed loudly - almost in disapproval - and the Archive mage was thrown back through the door, into the wall.

Fairy Tail's emblem moved up beside Sabertooth's, but Blue Pegasus' stayed put; in addition, a red 'x' appeared next to it.

"Strike one!" the ref called, amused.

* * *

After about thirty minutes, Rufus was on the twelfth floor, Yuka was on the eleventh floor, Wendy, Liz, and Beth were all on the tenth floor, and Hibiki was lagging behind on the fourth floor, having been thrown back to the first after answering wrong twice.

With a growl of frustration, Wendy met her fifth dead end in the past few minutes, and put her hands on her hips before wheeling around...and coming face to face with the door a second after Liz moved up to the eleventh floor.

The blue-haired girl's next riddle was easy (_What has a face and two hands, but but arms or legs? _A clock.) and she let out a cheer as she dashed onto the next floor.

A few minutes later found Rufus on the nineteenth floor, with Wendy, Yuka, and Liz only a floor below him, although Liz moved up a few seconds after Sabertooth became assured of its victory.

"Come on, come on!" Sting leaned against the railing eagerly as he called out, and Orga joined him a moment later, their cheering blending in with that of the crowd.

Rogue just grinned at the two of them, but Lucy was carefully watching the screen.

"She found it!" the blonde exclaimed a moment later, pointing, and her fellow team members looked just in time to see Liz answer her final riddle and dart onto the top floor, snatching up the gold flag from its pedestal to overwhelming cheering and screaming from LionHeart's team.

With a small smile on his face, Rufus found his last door, and easily answered the riddle. (_Has a blade of jagged cut/Keeps the quickest hand out shut./Goes in darkness. Wears a ring./One is quiet. Many sing. _A key_.)_He walked leisurely into the room and took the silver flag.

Yuka took the bronze flag at the forty-five minute mark, and Wendy took the next flat - the gray one - about ten minutes later. Hibiki and Beth made a mad rush to the top floor, but Hibiki got thrown back down to the first after three more wrong answers, and Beth got the white flag less than a minute before time was up.

"That's it for this challenge!" the referee called, and the announcer, in agreement, said, "Indeed! Here are the new, updated scores!"

**Sabertooth: 19pts**

**Fairy Tail: 17pts**

**LionHeart: 11pts**

**Lamia Scale: 8pts**

**Mermaid Heel: 7pts**

**Blue Pegasus: 5pts**

"So, folks, Sabertooth is in the lead with Fairy Tail only two points behind! A little ways behind the top two are LionHeart with eleven points and Lamia Scale with eight. Mermaid Heel and Blue Pegasus aren't far behind these two with seven points and five points respectively!"

As the crowd cheered, the riddle maze - since all of the mages had returned to their teams - began to shrink until it was the size of a small crate and a few people simply carried it off of the field, to the surprise of the crowd.

("That huge freaking tower folds up into a crate? Holy hell." Laxus muttered.)

"Well, folks, we're going to jump right in to the battle part of today." the announcer proclaimed. "But, these battles are going to have a little twist. Everybody, get ready for Pick-A-Partner-Battles! Once again, our ref will explain!"

"Hai!*" The announcer, standing in the middle of an arena, agreed. **(* - Yes)**

"Pick-a-Partner-Battles are pretty simple. Each team will pick two people to fight, and the teams with the lowest and highest scores will pick the guild team that they want to battle - hence, Pick-Your-Partner, although Pick-Your-Opponent sounds more appropriate to me. Anyway, we're going to allow a minute of deliberation before representatives from Sabertooth and Blue Pegasus tell us which guild they'd like to battle. The two unchosen guilds will be pitted against each other."

The five Sabertooth team members shared a look, then a grin; they all knew who they wanted to fight. So, when the ref turned to them, the five of them echoed at once, "Fairy Tail."

"I feel like we all should have expected that!" the announcer chuckled a little. "Anyway, let's hear from Blue Pegasus!"

"LionHeart." Ichiya announced, and the five young mages of said guild grinned, excited.

"Alright then!" the announcer nodded, and an image of the matches- in order - appeared at various points around the arena.

**Blue Pegasus vs. LionHeart**

**Lamia Scale vs. Mermaid Heel**

**Sabertooth vs. Fairy Tail**

"Of course we go last," Sting sighed.

"It gives us more time to think about two two we'd like to fight," Rufus said, sensibly, "although I'm guessing that everyone decided as soon as the ref said we could choose our two fighters."

Lucy blinked. "I didn't." she said, holding up her hands.

"We did," Rogue, Sting, and Orga echoed.

"You and me, of course," Sting said, grinning at Lucy.

"Exactly." Orga nodded. "I've always wondered how you two would fight together."

"And the audience saw shadows and light fighting together last year." Rogue added.

"I'm not opposed." Rufus shrugged.

"I guess I'm not, either." Lucy sighed. "Sting, if that's what you want to do, I'll go along with it."

"Yes!" the blonde man cheered, then held up his hand for a high five, which Lucy reluctantly returned, although she was smiling.

"You're an idiot."

* * *

"Since we've got a little bit of time left today, we've decided to go ahead and let the Pick-Your-Partner battles begin! If the two person teams from Blue Pegasus and LionHeart could please make their way to the arena floor so we could get started!"

There was some movement from both teams, and, a few moments later, the two teams appeared on opposite sides of the arena. Instantly, their images popped up on screens for the audience to see.

"So, it's Blue Pegasus' Ren and Eve vs. LionHeart's Kris and James! This should be an interesting fight; Kris uses Fire Magic that could counter Eve's Snow Magic. Ren uses Air Magic, but I'm not sure what that could do to James' Music Magic." the announcer mused. "Anyway...let the battle commence!"

* * *

"White Out!" Ren leaped backwards, away from Kris, as he cast the spell, snow flying from the magic circle in front of his hand.

"Ring of Fire!" the LionHeart mage countered, a circular wall of flame shooting up around him that melted the snow and created steam that completely blocked the vision of all four opponents.

"Kris!" James called out, in complaint.

"Tsk." Ren clucked his tongue. "Gust!" he called, and a magic circle appeared across the entire arena floor, a huge gust of wind shooting in an upwards motion, lifting the battling mages quite a few feet off the ground and dispersing the steam.

"I see you!" James cried, from behind Ren. "Sound Explosion!"

Six simultaneous magic circles appeared around Ren; above his head, below his feet, in front of and behind him, and on both sides of his sides. There was a second when it seemed like nothing would happen, but just as the mages' feet touched the ground, deafeningly loud sound blasted inward from all of the circles.

Ren screamed and fell to his knees, his hands clapped over his ears. The circles disappeared a moment later, but he stayed on the ground, dazed, confused and in pain from the sound.

"Ren!" Eve cried, half turning his attention to his partner.

"Don't take your eyes off of an opponent!" Kris shouted, but when Eve turned back, it was too late; Kris's fire attack - similar to a Dragon Slayer's Wing Slash - caught the blonde boy full in the chest and sent him flying back towards the arena wall, which he crashed into, falling to the ground and lying still.

James, feeling a little bit bad about how much pain Ren was in, used his magic to play a lullaby straight into the tan boy's mind, which made him fall deeply asleep, flopped out on the ground unceremoniously.

"That's it, folks! LionHeart wins, and earns five points!"

* * *

Yukino glanced up from her book. "It's crazy how you can hear the cheering from here..." she muttered. "What do you think has happened, Levy-chan? Um, Levy-chan?" The Celestial Spirit mage blinked uncomfortably as Levy stared at her. "What?"

"If we're wondering about a Celestial magic spell...why don't we ask a Celestial Spirit?" the bluenette asked.

Eyes growing wide, Yukino gasped, then smacked her forehead. "I can't believe we wasted all day in here and didn't once think about that." she groaned, reaching for her keys. "Open, Gate of the Northern Cross! Cygnus!"

As the Spirit was appearing, Levy said, "Doesn't Lucy have the Southern Cross?"

"Yes," Yukino nodded. "Crux. This is the Northern Cross, or the swan, Cygnus. Unlike Crux, she is also handy in battle...or so I've heard. I just found her key before the Games, and I haven't had a chance to try her out yet."

"Unfortunate, really," a soft voice replied. "It's been so long since my Master has allowed me to test my strengths."

"Sorry, Cygnus," Yukino smiled apologetically at the woman sitting in the chair across from her and Levy.

_(The Spirit was wearing a white feathered dress with white wristlets and anklets that had little wings on them, which Levy assumed was a sign her status as the swan.)_

"That aside," Cygnus shrugged, "what can I do for you, Yukino-sama?"

("Ah, just Yukino, please." Yukino sweatdropped.)

"Cygnus," Levy said, and the Spirit's pale blue eyes turned to her. "We need to ask you about something. A Celestial spell."

"Name it, and I shall do my best, friend of Yukino." Cygnus bobbed her head.

"It's called _Deux lux Mea_." Yukino chipped in. "I know the incantation, if you need it. I also know that it gave her the ability to sometimes...well, not hear thoughts, but...intentions, I guess?'

"And Yukino told me about something Lucy said yesterday that we both think was a little strange. Something about 'only four more months.'" Levy said. "Does that have something to do with it?"

"Both of those things have something to do with it," Cygnus began, and Yukino interrupted in surprise, "You don't need to search?"

"Search?" the Spirit blinked. "No. You could have asked any Spirit in your possession and they would be able to tell you as much as I can. _Deux lux Mea _is a spell created by the Celestial Spirit king that focuses on the evil inside of an enemy soul and destroys it, turning the body to stone. The ability to hear thoughts or, more accurately, intentions, is because the Spirit King pitied those who were desperate enough to cast the spell and hoped for them to go knowing how the people they loved truly felt about them."

"Wait. What do you mean by 'go?'" Levy asked. "Go where?"

"Go to the afterlife," Cygnus said, her gentle voice too soft for the news she was delivering. "The prince of _Deux lux Mea _is all but a year of your life."

* * *

**End of Chapter**

* * *

**Scores**

**Sabertooth: 19pts**

**Fairy Tail: 17pts**

**LionHeart: 16pts**

**Lamia Scale: 8pts**

**Mermaid Heel: 7pts**

**Blue Pegasus: 5pts**

* * *

**Teams**

Team Fairy Tail: **Natsu**, Gray, Erza, _**Wendy**_, Laxus

Team Sabertooth: **Lucy/Thea**, Sting, Rogue, Orga(in for _Yukino_), **Rufus**

Team Mermaid Heel: _Amelia(Take Over/Shapeshifting)_, **Millianna**, Risley, Kagura, **Beth**

Team LionHeart: _Marie(Corpse Summoning)_, **Jaime(Ring Magic)**, _Kris(Fire Magic), James(Music Magic)_, **Liz(Earth Make)**

Team Lamia Scale: _Chelia_, **Lyon**, Jura, Sherry, **Yuka**

Team Blue Pegasus: _Hibiki_, **Jenny**, _Eve, Ren_, Ichiya

_Italics = battled_

**Bold = participated in challenge**

* * *

**Game Schedule**

Day One: Introduction of the teams/One-on-One battles

Day Two: One-on-One battles/First Challenge - Fear House

Day Three: Second Challenge - Riddle Maze/ Pick-a-Partner Battles(1)

Day Four: Pick-a-Partner Battles(2)/Third Challenge - Find It

Day Five: Day of Rest

Day Six: Luck (Or Misfortune) of the Draw/Winners Declared

Day Seven: All-Guild Celebration/Fiore Day Festival

* * *

**Meh. That's just how I feel about this chapter. Meh.**


	10. Demons Rising

Levy was out the door before Yukino could even blink, her short legs working double time as she dashed through the stacks of books, then busted through the doors, the shouts of the librarian echoing behind her as she stumbled down the steps and into the street.

Once there, she paused, whipping her head back and forth. One the one hand, if she turned to the left, she could tell Fairy Tail. On the other hand, if she turned right, she could confront Lucy...

A sudden hand on the back of Levy's shoulder made her jump before glancing over her shoulder at Yukino, whose blue eyes reflected the same indecision the Solid Script mage thought hers must show.

"I think," the Celestial Spirit mage said quietly, "we should wait. To tell anyone, or to confront her. I'm sad to admit that I'm selfish and don't want to interfere with the Games' outcome."

"So you want me to go back and say that I haven't found anything?" Levy looked forward again.

"No." Yukino shook her head, even though Levy couldn't see her. "I think we should just take a few more books to a different hotel for now. We'll stay there, read some more, and I'll call out some of my Spirits to see if we can learn anything else about _Deux lux Mea_. Please, Levy. More than anything else, I don't want Lucy to feel like she has to run away again. Because, you know, that's all she's been doing recently."

Levy inhaled, then exhaled shakily. "Alright. Okay. We still have four more months to figure this out, right? Four more months..."

"That's the spirit," Yukino dropped her hand away from Levy's shoulder. "I'm going in to get those few books we didn't get a chance to read. You, uh, had better wait out here. The librarian told me that you weren't allowed back in at the moment."

"Running like hell is sometimes frowned upon when you're in a library," Levy joked, weakly, and Yukino forced a smile, touching one of the keys on her key ring slightly as she turned to go up the stairs, glancing behind her.

Cygnus appeared a moment later, standing beside Levy almost protectively.

With a small sigh, Yukino re-entered the library, and smiled apologetically at the glaring librarian, before asking, "Um...can I check out a few books?"

* * *

Rufus peeked out of the library and into the hotel's front room, where the Sabertooth team had made a habit of staying. "Yukino called," he said, "and she's decided that the library is too good to pass up so she's going to stay. She also said not to wait up."

"So she's not participating tomorrow, either?" Orga grinned. "Excellent."

"I didn't know you had such big words in your vocabulary. 'Participating?' 'Excellent?'" Lucy teased, while sitting on the floor, watching Krysanthe play with Froche* and Lector, who were trying to teach the young cat how to fly.

**(* - Okay, so I don't know how to spell his name and you might see it a few different ways throughout this story and possibly this story. Just a warning.)**

Orga just grumbled in reply, and Rufus ducked back into the library with a half smile.

"Come on, Krys," Lector urged, hovering a few inches above the ground. "It's easy!"

"Fro agrees!" Froche added, as he hovered a few feet over the little cat, who leaned her head back to look at him.

Krys glanced at both of her wings, then, with a soft grunt, gave a little jump. She stayed suspended in the air an inch or so off the ground for perhaps thirty seconds, then lowered back to the ground, looking to Lucy for approval.

Lucy applauded, then opened her arms for Krys to jump in them, like she loved to do. "Good job, Krys," the blonde praised, as the little cat snuggled up to her. "Soon enough you'll be flying just like Lector and Froche."

"I want to fly like Happy-nii," Krys pushed her upper body away from Lucy so she could look at her. "He can do Max Speed and fly really really fast - that's what Lector-nii and Froche-nii told me."

"Oh?" Rogue, sitting on the couch behind Lucy, smiled at the little cat. "Have you asked Happy to help you with that yet?"

"No," Krys shook her head, hopping out of Lucy's arms. "Lucy is busy and I don't want to go alone."

"I'm not too busy to take you!" Lucy protested. "In fact, I kind of wanted to visit to see how everyone was doing. We could go right now!" she shot to her feet at this last part, and Sting glanced at her.

"Well," he said, rolling off of the couch he was lying on, "why don't we all go? Nothing like a little friendly drinking to lighten the mood before we fight tomorrow."

"I'll go, too." Rogue decided, standing. "I wanted to speak with Gajeel-san."

"I'll stay," Orga plopped down on the couch Sting had previously occupied, stretching out like a cat. "I'd like to get some sleep in case I get to participate in tomorrow's challenge."

"Rufus, we're going to go see the Fairies! You wanna come?" Sting yelled, in the direction of the library.

There was no answer, so Sting shrugged and said, "Guess not. Let's go, Lector." The Exceed zoomed over to Sting, landing on his head, where he would probably stay the entire walk.

Froche hopped into Rogue's arms, and Krys - after Lucy had picked her up - settled in her normal place on Lucy's shoulder, little feet kicking lightly against the blonde's shoulder.

"Onward!" Lector cheered. "To Fairy Tail!"

Laughing, the three mages stepped out into the streets, the warm light of the setting sun washing over them.

* * *

"Friendly drinking, eh?" Cana examined the three Sabertooth mages with narrowed eyes, then snorted. "As long as one of you tries to out-drink me, I don't care if you stay."

"It's not really your decision, Cana," Mirajane said pleasantly from behind the bar, where she was standing after kicking out the bartender for...whatever reason. "Master said it was okay."

Abruptly, Laki and Lisanna appeared, each grabbing the arm of one of the boys. "If you've come to Fairy Tail, you've got to party like Fairy Tail!" the former exclaimed, dragging Rogue into the crowd, Froche bobbing in the air after them with Krys tightly clutched in his arms. The Shadow Dragon Slayer's cat would deliver the younger cat to Happy and Charla, who were sure to be together.

"Definitely," Lisanna giggled, tugging at Sting's sleeve. "Fairy Tail parties are the best!"

Sting looked at Lucy pleadingly, but the blonde girl just giggled. "Have fun, Sting. Lisanna, go easy on him; Fairy Tail parties are pretty intense."

"I have to say," Mira began, after her sister and the blonde Dragon Slayer were gone, "that, since we now know that you're so close, everyone's accepted you being part of Sabertooth very quickly."

"I know," Lucy smiled slightly. "I'm just glad that you don't all hate me for the lie I made Master - I mean, Makarov - tell for me. "You guys know I could never hate you...right?"

"Yeah, we were a little suspicious of that from the start." Cana put down her beer barrel. "But damn, did you really hurt Team Natsu's feelings."

"Yeah, I know." Lucy sighed. "I want them to forgive me, but I'd understand if they didn't."

Mira opened her mouth to reply, but then her lips curled into a mischievous smile, and she leaned in closer to Lucy, who'd taken a seat beside Cana at the bar. "Don't look now," she giggled, "but someone's looking at you."

The way the barmaid said 'looking' as if she was singing made Lucy shift uncomfortably and ask, "What are you talking about?"

Cana glanced over her shoulder discreetly, then, with a small whistle, said, "_Who_ is the better question. That hunk of a Dragon Slayer is checking you out."

"Just so you know, I know five very attractive Dragon Slayers. You have to be more specific." Lucy pointed out, and Cana rolled her eyes.

"Blonde." Mira said, helpfully.

"I know two."

"Good God," Cana grumbled, leaning in so she could speak directly into Lucy's ear. "It's Laxus!"

Lucy's eyebrows shot up, and she mouthed, 'Laxus?' at Cana, who nodded.

"Now he's walking over," Mira squealed softly. A second later, she turned away, tossing her hair over her shoulder. "Sure, I'll get you a drink. Strawberry milkshake?"

Lucy started to ask what the Strauss woman was talking about, but a sudden hand on her shoulder made her freeze.

"Can we go talk?" a deep voice asked, and Lucy glanced back to see the blonde Dragon Slayer in question standing there a little awkwardly.

"I...guess?" Lucy shrugged - which made his hand fall off of her shoulder - and then got up to follow him as he navigated through the rowdy crowd, leaving a trail in the wake of his large frame that made it quite easy for the Celestial mage to keep up.

She thought that they were headed to an empty table near the front of the huge main room, but Laxus kept going until he was all the way out the door and on the lamplit sidewalk.

When Lucy stepped out the door, she sighed a little. The cool night air and stars shining down on her made her feel like everything in the world was going to be alright, even though a quick glance down at her Sabertooth mark put everything suddenly back into perspective.

"So, what is it?" Lucy asked, after she and the other blonde had wandered down a few blocks to a garden in the middle of the neighborhood, little light lacrima floating about in the air around them.

"Levy's been at the library all day, and we haven't heard from her except for her to say that she'd almost like to live there. She's been researching that spell that we saw, in your Fear House." Laxus said casually.

Lucy stiffened immediately. "I do not have to tell you anything, if that's why you brought me out here." she said quietly.

"Look, Blondie - Lucy," he turned to her abruptly, then faltered before he said her name. "We're all really worried about you. You left Fairy Tail under the pretense that you were disgusted with us, but that was a lie. We can deal with that. But we can't deal with the fact that you won't tell us the truth."

"So you thought that you'd be able to sweet talk the reason out of me for everyone else?" Lucy demanded, crossing her arms. "Not gonna work, _Sparky_."

Laxus bristled a bit at the name, but took a step forward, closing the distance so that Lucy's crossed arms almost touched Laxus' chest. (She felt a certain pride that she was now tall enough for that to work out.)

"I'm not asking just because everyone else is too afraid; I'm asking because no one wants to know as badly as I do." he snapped, looking down at her.

"And why _do _you want to know so badly?" Lucy challenged.

Laxus growled. "God damnit, Blondie, do I have to spell it out? I care about you!"

"That's something I can almost bet any one of the others feels." Lucy rolled her eyes and started to walk away, but Laxus' hand on her shoulder again stopped her.

"Not like that." he said, voice strained. "I _like _you. I have feelings for you. 'I'm in love with you' might be going a little far, but not much." He paused to take a breath. "I was crushed when you left - terrified that I wouldn't be able to protect you if you needed it."

Lucy swallowed, then, as gently as possible, shrugged his hand off of his shoulder. "I need to go rest for tomorrow," she said, voice unusually high-pitched. "See you later."

Before he could protest, she took off running, and disappeared into the night.

* * *

"I haven't seen Lucy in a while - do you know where she went?" Rogue was yelling over the music, question directed at Mira, who he'd seen his blonde companion with last.

"No, I'm sorry," Mira yelled back. "She and Laxus went outside to talk ages ago, and only he's come back. It was only for a moment, though, and then he left again."

Rogue's brows furrowed. "What about Froche and Krys?"

"Krys fell asleep, so Froche brought her up here. They're asleep under the bar, right here," Mira knelt down, then stood a moment later, the two Exceeds nestled in her arms.

Rogue took them, then yelled, "I don't know how they sleep through this noise, but thanks for taking care of them. Tell Sting and Lector that the tree of us and Lucy have already left, if you see them, please!"

Mira gave him the thumbs-up, then turned to Cana, who'd been demanding more beer to the post on her left for more than five minutes.

Rogue, still cradling the Exceeds, weaved through the crowd until he was outdoors, then, with a sniff, started to follow Lucy's scent. It seemed to go into, then come out of a garden a few blocks down, so Rogue only paused by the rose bushes that acted as the garden's border before continuing on.

He walked for about fifteen minutes before a figure sitting on a bench a block ahead caught his eyes; he could tell that it was a woman by the shape of her figure and the long hair swept in front of her face. He knew who it was right away, her vanilla and strawberry scent hitting him the moment he caught sight of her. For the first time in what felt like forever, she was not wearing her cloak; just a pair of jeans and a tank top.

"Hi," Rogue said, as he sat down beside Lucy on the bench, carefully handing her Krys, who she held close to her chest. "Hello," she replied.

"Mira said that you and Laxus went to talk, and then you never came back. Is everything okay?" the dark-haired man asked, after a minute.

"It's...girl-stuff."

Rogue shrugged. "Well, besides Sting, Yukino is my closest human friend, so I've heard some of her issues. Try me?"

Lucy bit her lip, then said, "Laxus told me he...liked me."

"Oh." Rogue said, slowly. "It that, um, a bad thing?"

"I guess...it's not horrible, but I've never thought about him like that. I don't want to, really, because I'm planning on leaving - I mean, I - I just...ugh." Lucy sighed, her shoulders drooping.

"You're planning on leaving Sabertooth after the Games." Rogue stated, and she drooped even further down on the bench.

"I can't stay," she murmured, stroking Krys' fur absently. "And I can't tell you why."

"I got that," Rogue smiled, though there was no warmth in it. "The whole 'can't tell you why' thing. But I think you need to realize that it's hurting Fairy Tail and us...but mostly it's hurting you. You should just think about that, for a while. But not out here - let's walk back to the hotel so we can get some rest before tomorrow."

"Yeah. Yeah, we should." With a deep breath, Lucy stood, then smiled down at Rogue. "Come on. A gentleman never lets a lady walk alone."

* * *

"How are the plans coming, Asura?" a man, face cloaked in the shadows of the dimly lit room asked the boy - barely an adult, perhaps seventeen or eighteen - who had entered.

Asura bowed, black hair, eyes, and clothes making his pale skin seem to glow. "They are in motion, Daman-sama. But I thought I would come and tell you one thing; the final battle before tomorrow's challenge includes the daughter of Estrella...that old lizard boasted proudly of her strength before you drove your blade through her heart."

"Oh?" the man - Daman - leaned forward in his seat, light from a lacrima throwing his face into sight. His skin was an odd color; naturally dark but with a tint that suggested he did not see the sun very often, and his eyes were unsettling; they went from red to yellow, yellow to orange, orange to black, then back again, constantly. "I did want to know if the girl - Lucy? - had strenght like that reptile claimed."

"Would you like me to make sure that It does not take place until after her battle?"

"Yes." Daman decided, after a moment. "With something like It, the timing is not incredibly important. Just make sure that you don't miss."

"Daman-sama," - Asura sounded almost offended - "I _never _miss."

* * *

**End Chapter**

* * *

**Just so you know, 'Daman' and 'Asura' both mean 'a demon.' Or, at least, where I found them, that was the definition.**

**What do you guys think of this chapter? Love? Hate? Eh? Leave a review and give me some feedback!**


	11. The Three Dragons and the Titania

**I do not own Fairy Tail**

**(For now, I'm going to skip over the Lamia Scale vs. Mermaid Heel battle. If you guys would like to see it - let me know if you do - perhaps it can be a filler chapter later on.)**

* * *

The fight between Lamia Scale and Mermaid Heel came to a draw; Jura, although he was one of the Ten Wizard Saints, could not defeat Kagura and vice versa. Lyon did manage to get the upper hand against Milliana, but time ran out before he could actually defeat her. Both teams were awarded five points, and the scores were updated, then shown around the arena.

**Sabertooth: 19pts**

**Fairy Tail: 17pts**

**LionHeart: 16pts**

**Lamia Scale: 13pts**

**Mermaid Heel: 12pts**

**Blue Pegasus: 5pts**

"And now, I think we're going to have what I think will be the most anticipated battle of the week! As it was, this was what people looked forward to last year, wasn't it?" Yajima, who was commentating once again this year, asked Announcer*.

**(*This announcer, who has, so far, not been named, will now just be called Announcer. Like, that's his name. I'm getting confused, I think you guys might get confused...His name is Announcer.)**

"It was, indeed!" Announcer agreed. "And, because they were unable to view the anticipated battle last year, we have the honor of welcoming two very special guests, who have, I've been told, just arrived. Please, everyone, turn your attention to the special booth set up directly across from our booth, and welcome King Toma and Princess Hisui of Fiore!"

* * *

"Eh!?" Lucy and Sting shared surprised looks as the arena exploded into cheering and clapping as the King - a short man with white hair - and his daughter - a beautiful young woman with jade green eyes and hair - entered their special booth, waving at the crowd before taking their seats.

"This is great," Lucy grimaced. "My first real fight with my Dragon Slaying abilities, and the king and princess are here to witness it."

"Don't worry, we'll do fine," Sting said, although he sounded somewhat uncertain as he glanced at the Fairy Tail booth, where all the members except one were clapping enthusiastically enough. The blonde man narrowed his eyes at the Lightning Dragon Slayer, who was staring openly at...Lucy? The Sabertooth mage snarled slightly under his breath.

Lucy, who was still watching the king and princess anxiously, heard and turned to look at her battle-partner, frowning. "Sting? What's wrong?"

He glanced at her, then at Laxus, then back at her before dropping his eyes and shrugging. "Nothing. Are you ready?"

"Yeah," Lucy agreed, then gave a quick hug to each of her other three teammates before following Sting down the staircase that would lead to the arena floor. With royalty watching, it was better to be more dignified and take the conventional way down.

"Do you know which Fairy Tail mages are fighting?" Sting questioned, as they walked down the last few stairs. "I didn't ask last night, and I didn't watch to see who left their booth."

"My best guess is Natsu and Laxus, although I don't know about their teamwork." Lucy shrugged. "Maybe Erza and Natsu. I would say Wendy and Natsu, but Wendy's already battled."

"I guess we'll know in a minute," Sting said, as the two hesitated at the bottom of the stairs, staring forward to the end of the short tunnel that would take them to the arena floor.

"Mhm." Lucy agreed, then held out her hand to the blonde, who took it. They shook hands, murmured, "Good luck." to each other, and then walked out.

Their two opponents were already waiting for them in the middle of the field, and Lucy chuckled. "I guess we should have guessed," she told Sting, as Makarov's grandson and Titania stared back at them. "Just our luck that it's the two S Class mages."

They stopped with about four feet in between them, both pairs of partners standing so close that their shoulders nearly touched.

"Just because you used to be part of our guild, does not mean that I will go easy on you." Erza replied to Lucy's comments with a smile. "As for this battle, I will test your strength. Lucy Heartfilia, your opponent is me."

"Gues that leaves you and me, Sparky," Sting - edging away from Lucy and Erza, who were staring at each other intensely as they smiled - commented, glancing at Laxus only to find that the other blonde man was staring at Lucy once again. He frowned.

"It looks like they have decided to split off into two battles! This should be interesting, don't you think, Yajima-san?" Announcer asked, a little more excited than he had been previously.

"It certainly will." Yajima agreed.

The ref, with a smile of anticipation, lifted his arm. "Begin!" he cried, and, as the sound of a gong echoed around the arena, the four mages shifted into fighting stances.

* * *

As soon as they got the green light to start fighting, a magic circle appeared under Erza as she requiped into her Heaven's Wheel armor.

"What?" Lucy challenged. "You're not even going to take it a little easy on me?"

Erza grinned in reply. "No chance! Dance, my blades!"

Lucy, familiar with this attack, danced easily through the blades that flew towards her, eventually becoming a blur that even Erza couldn't follow. As the hundred (or so) swords vanished, Lucy stood before Erza with a big smile on her face, unscathed.

("W - whoa. She managed to dodge all of Erza's attacks!" Gray, wide-eyed, stuttered. Natsu, furious that he was not able to fight, complained, "Damn it, _I _want to fight Luce!")

"That was good, Erza! You're just as strong as I remember!" the blonde gave the redhead a thumbs up. "Now it's my turn to show you my strength!" With that, she inhaled deeply. "Celestial Dragon's Roar!"

Erza didn't have time to dodge; there was a flash of light as she requipped, then an even brighter flash as Lucy's attack hit whatever weapon or armor she'd summoned.

When the light faded and the dust died died, Fairy Tail's members cried out in shock. Erza was wearing the - repaired - Adamantine Armor, the exact thing she'd worn to block the Jupiter Cannon fired at them from Phantom Lord's mobile guild...and, as they watched, the two-part shield crumbled in the S Class mage's hands.

("Th - that shouldn't be possible!" Yajima stuttered, voicing the thoughts of the Fairy Tail mages. "That is the armor that stopped the now-disbanded Phantom Lord's infamous Jupiter cannon! Lucy's attack destroyed it!")

"Whoops." Lucy said, having fun now that'd she'd forgotten about the two royals watching the fight. "My bad."

"No, that was actually really good," Erza's eyes sparkled with interest. "Get ready, though. Now we're going to get serious." As she shifted her body's position, she requipped into her Lightning Empress armor. "Show me your defensive power!"

* * *

Sting was not doing quite as well as his partner (who he was, in fact, rather astounded by, for he'd never actually seen her fight seriously). Laxus was easily able to hit him and cause damage, and the White Dragon Slayer was already feeling tired after getting in a few good hits of his own.

With a huff and a will not to be outdone, Sting lunged at Laxus, fingers curled into a fist. With an almost lazy expression, Laxus lifted his arm to block. Where fist and arm collided, a gust of wind swept across the arena.

Sting gritted his teeth as the two struggled almost silently, trying to send the other flying. "Quit...staring...at...Lucy!"

Laxus's grey eyes widened as Sting suddenly gained the upper hand, and grunted as he was thrown backwards.

("What did he say?" Announcer wondered aloud. "Whatever it was, it seemed to make Laxus lose his focus enough for Sting to push him back!")

Laxus scoffed as he skidded on the balls of his feet, stopping himself. "Lightning Dragon's Roar!"

Sting leaped right to dodge, but, with a chuckle, Laxus turned his head, making the attack whip in the White Dragon Slayer's direction. Sting, realizing what would happen, braced himself, but before the attack hit him, a pair of hands appeared on his shoulders, shoving him forward. Sting used the added speed to help himself flip, landing on his feet with a look of surprise.

"What - !" his blue eyes shot open in horror when he spotted a second Laxus not far from him, standing there calmly. "There are _two _of you?!"

"No," the closer Laxus turned his face towards the Sabertooth mage, who recoiled when he saw that the other Dragon Slayer had no pupils. "We're Gemini. Lucy asked us to help."

"Sweet." Sting, with a smile, glanced at Laxus, who looked a little more serious at the prospect of fighting himself. "Say, have you copied Gildarts recently?"

Gemini/Laxus grinned wickedly, and their form glowed for a moment. When the light died down, 'Gildarts' stood there, arms crossed. "Ready?" the Spirits asked Sting.

Sting smirked in reply "Let's do it."

* * *

Lucy rolled to the side, dodging the Lightning Beam from the tip of Erza's spear. Whipped around only to be faced with another attack, she swept her arms forward. "Celestial Dragon's Wing Slash!" The blonde's attack sliced through the lightning, and it parted around her, hitting the stone wall of the arena.

Erza, with a laugh, requipped once again, this time into her cheetah-printed Flight Armor. She dashed forward, showing off speed that had rivaled Racer of Oración Seis and becoming a blur to the crowd. "Sonic Claw!"

Lucy was able to see her clearly, but unable to dodge. With a clench of her jaw, she lifted up her arms, crossed, to protect her stomach, chest, and face. The blonde grunted as the blows fell upon her, but, when Erza fell back, she was minimally injured. Her worst wound was a cut on her right arm that slowly dripped blood. She grinned before lunging forward.

All of the Fairy Tail mages shot to their feet in shock; Lucy's kicks and punches, without magic power - were _hurting Erza_. The redhead had already started to slow down, bruises slowly forming on her bare skin. No matter what armor she requipped into, Lucy's speed far exceeded hers, and the balance of their strength slowly started to tip in the blonde girl's favor.

Meanwhile, Sting and Gemini/Gildarts were giving Laxus a run for his money; Sting had trained nearly non-stop since the year before, and the Celestial Spirit was using the Crash magic with ease, quickly tiring the Lightning mage.

("I...I don't believe it," Makarov whispered, wide-eyed. "The two of them...how is their power already so incredible?!")

"Sting!" Lucy bellowed, carefully keeping an eye on a panting Erza. "Gemini will hold Laxus for the moment. Come here!"

Sting already knew what she was thinking as he skidded to a stop beside her, holding out his hand to grab hers. Their arms started to glow brightly, white mixing with the mixed colors of Lucy's Celestial Magic.

Erza, realizing what was going to happen, started to move towards the two Dragon Slayers, but Loke appeared in her path, blasting her with Regulus. Through their telepathic bond, Lucy told the Lion Spirit, _As soon as we finish casting, you and Gemini get out of here! I don't want to hit you!_

Lucy took a deep breath, closing her eyes. When she reopened them, her irises had become golden magic circles.

"_Survey the Heavens, Open the Heavens..._

_All the stars, far and wide..._

_Show me thy appearance..._

_With such shine._

_Oh Tetrabiblos... _

_I am the ruler of the stars..._

_Aspect become complete..._

_Open thy malevolent gate._

_Oh 88 Stars of the heaven... _

_Shine!_

_**White Star!**__*"_

* * *

The light that emanated from the two blondes was so great that everyone in the arena closed their eyes, and most - including many of the guild members - turned away; those who didn't had spots in their vision when they opened their eyes again.

"N - no way!" Wendy squeaked, when she could see once more.

Gray and Natsu, once recovered, gasped, with a simultaneous, "Holy shit."

Laxus and Erza, looked battered and bruised, were lying on the ground, both with their eyes closed. Sting and Lucy, still hands still clasped, were both on their feet a few feet away from Titania. Sting looked a little worse for wear, but Lucy had very few wounds; just a few scrapes and the scratch on her arm.

"Th - that's the match!" the ref stuttered. "Sabertooth earns five points!"

The arena went from dead silence to nearly bursting with cheers in about a quarter of a second, rousing the two downed Fairy Tail mages, who both sat up just in time to see Sting, with a whoop, grab Lucy around the waist, swinging her in a circle in the air.

She laughed loudly and her hair, out of its ponytail, flared out. Sting sat her down, and...

The girls in the crowd squealed, the guys raised their eyebrows, and Laxus snarled as Sting kissed Lucy, full on the mouth in front of everyone.

"Oh my," Yajima commented. "You two, there are children in the audience..."

* * *

"Daman-sama, I have a clean shot." Asura addressed the small communication lacrima to his immediate right. "Would you like me to...?"

"Do it." Daman replied. "I will address the crowd, as soon as you have."

"I understand." Asura reached out to switch off the lacrima, then repositioned his hands on his gun, putting his eye to the sight and lining up his target in the crosshairs. "To Zeref," the dark-haired boy muttered to himself, eyes sparkling.

* * *

The only thing the audience heard was a loud _bang_!

Then the screaming started.

* * *

**Dun dun dun.**

***'White Star' was said by both Sting and Lucy**

**Next Chapter: The Fall of a King and a Dragon**


	12. The Fall of a King and a Dragon

"The king! They have murdered the king!"

This was the first coherent scream that Lucy heard after she and Sting broke apart, and both blondes whipped around to look at the booth where the king had been sitting to see the young princess, covered in a splatter of blood, crying over a small body.

The two Sabertooth mages were frozen to the ground, but Laxus and Erza, with grunts of exertion and pain, got up and leaped to grab the lip of the arena wall and pulled themselves up, then began hopping up the rows - empty because of the fleeing spectators - until they reached the princess, who Erza pulled away from her father's body.

Laxus bent over the body, shook his head, and then began scanning around the arena for possible threats. Erza refused to give the princess to the guards who had appeared, instead opting to make herself guardian of the princess, who was clutching the redhead tightly.

"We have to help them," Lucy unfroze first, and took a few running steps forward, before she hit something invisible. With a cry, she was thrown backwards, into Sting's arms.

"A barrier?" he wondered aloud. "How come those two could go through?"

"That's because I wanted them to go." a voice said behind them, and Lucy pushed herself away from Sting, turning with a snarl that he echoed.

Behind them were three people. The one closest to the two blondes looked to be an older man, with dark skin and constantly color-changing eyes. On his left flank was a short woman with blood red eyes and white hair, who was staring at Sting with a smile that showed all of her teeth, which were filed to points. The last person was a young man on the first's right flank; he had black hair and eyes, and his skin was so pale it seemed to glow. All three were wearing midnight black robes.

Lucy's eyes locked on to the gun in the younger man's hand. Eyes widening, she whispered, "It was you. You...you shot the king! Bastard!"

"Bastard? No, Daughter of Estrella, my name is Asura. The man in front of me is the great Dark mage, Daman-sama. The woman is Lilith, who has set up the barrier that prevents you from leaving this arena." Asura grinned widely, and began stroking the gun almost lovingly.

Lucy gritted her teeth. "What do you know about Estrella?" she spat.

"Well, my dear, we had the pleasure of meeting her quite recently. She spoke of your beauty and strength, and when we learned that you would fight today, well, we actually put off our plan to get rid of the dear king right away just to watch." Daman replied, with what looked like a kind smile.

The smile didn't reach his cold, calculating eyes, and Lucy, not fooled, bared her teeth at him."When she finds out what you've done, she'll kill you."

"Unlikely," Lilith said, with a childish giggle. "You see, Daman-sama killed that old lizard."

Sting barely had time to wrap his arms around Lucy's shoulders before she attacked the three mages in front of her. As it was, she let out a scream of fury and grief, actually pulling him forward a foot or so with the force of her movement.

"I'll _kill _you!" she screamed. "I'll kill you, I'll kill you, I'll _kill you_!"

Sting was half tempted to let her go, but fear for her life stopped him. "You bastards," he snarled, over her shoulder, instead. "You have invoked the wrath of the strongest guilds in this country! There is no way we'll let you get away with the murder of -"

"We don't need him." Daman interrupted, and neither blonde had enough time to react before Asura raised and fired his gun.

* * *

"Where are Sting and Lucy?" Rufus asked, as he, Rogue, and Orga struggled through the crowd to reach the rest of their guild members.

"Last time I looked they were still on the arena floor," Rogue replied, trying his best to keep Froche in the center of his chest to prevent the cat from being shoved. "I've tried looking a few times now, but I can't see anything down there will all these people still running about."

"Get one of the cats to look!" Orga grunted, as a few men shoved him forcefully in their rush to get out.

"Fro is scared." Froche replied, and his Dragon Slayer hugged him close.

"It'll have to be you, Lector!" Rogue called to the Exceed clutching Krys in one of his arms and holding on to Rufus with the other. "Give Krys to Rufus and take a look!"

With a jerky, frightened nod, Lector handed over the small, weeping Exceed and spread his wings, using Rufus' shoulders to jump from. The three men - with the two cats - shoved themselves up against a stairwell - full of people fleeing down - wall so they could stay with him.

"What do you see?" Orga shouted.

"I see Lucy and Sting-kun, with three other people - "

Another _bang _resounded through the arena, sending the people into even more of a frenzy and prompting them to run a little faster.

Lector froze, midair, eyes widening in horror.

"What happened?" Rogue cried out to him, feeling panic rise in his chest at the look on Sting's Exceed's face.

"_STING-KUN!_" With no warning, Lector screamed, diving down into the arena.

The three remaining men shared a look. "We have to get down there." Rufus said, and he jumped forward into the crowd, pushing and shoving people aside in his fight to go the opposite direction as everyone else wanted to go.

Rogue and Orga followed after, and with all three beginning to unconsciously use their magic, the crowd started parting around them like a river around rocks. They finally reached a point, about five rows up from the top of the arena wall where there were no people.

Orga gasped in horror, and Rufus froze. Rogue was the only one who could do anything.

"STING!"

* * *

The _bang _echoed in Lucy's ears, and she realized in horror that the arms around her shoulders were loosening...It was like the whole world was in slow motion when the arms vanished completely, Lucy turning in time to see Sting hit the ground, hand going up to his neck, where blood gushed from between his fingers. The same blood was spattered on her back and the lower part of her face.

The echo of a scream of 'Sting-kun' reached her ears, then repeated thuds against Lilith's barrier, but most all of her attention was on her partner as she threw herself down beside him, tearing a strip of cloth off of her shirt that she wadded up and pressed to his neck, after brushing his hands away.

For the first time, Lucy looked into Sting's eyes and saw fear.

"No." she said. "No, no, no, no. Sting, you're not going to die. You're not going to die. You're going to be perfectly okay, and we - we're going to win the Grand Magic Games and celebrate and I won't leave. I won't leave, so you can't die!"

Even as she said this, his blood soaked through the cloth and began to stain her hands, and he looked at her with a small smile on his face, reaching up one, bloody hand to touch her face. "Take...take Weisslogia's power...and kill them for me."

"_You _keep that power. You are going to fight with me. _We_, along with Sabertooth and the others, will make sure that they don't get away with this." Lucy said forcefully, putting a little more pressure on his wound. "_We_. Not _me_." Her voice broke.

Sting kept smiling. "You can do it...You are...strong." his face fell a little as he gasped this out, coughing up blood. "Take...this power." His brows furrowed, and Lucy could feel power surging from his hand into her as her tears splashed down on his face.

"I..." he gasped, the power starting to stop flowing. "I lo - " His face went slack, and his hand slid across her cheekbone before falling, hitting the ground with a soft thud. His eyes glazed over.

"Sting?" Lucy touched his face. "Sting?" she moved her hand to his shoulder and shook it slightly. "Sting!" she shrieked. "No no no no no no. _STING!_"

* * *

Daman watched, unemotionally, as an entire strip of Lucy's blonde hair became white, her companion's power transferring into her body. He managed a bit of a smile as the boy's hand dropped away from the blonde woman's face, and she screamed out for him.

"We'll leave you to your grief, young one," he said. "But beware; as long as the princess and your guilds are alive, my followers and I will hunt. We will kill them all, one by one, until only you are left. And you, dear, will witness Zeref's return before he kills you and you are able to be with them again."

"You are ready to leave, sir?" Lilith asked, putting one hand on Daman's shoulder and reaching out for the hand that Asura held out.

"Yes, child. Take us away."

And the three of them vanished, leaving behind nothing but black smoke.

* * *

Lector, who had beaten himself against the invisible barrier again and again until he was half delirious from pain, found, upon perhaps his two dozenth attempt, that he could go forward; nothing was in his way. The little Exceed shook his head to clear it, zoned in on Lucy and Sting, and dove towards the ground.

He miscalculated and hit the ground a few feet away from the blondes, but hopped up almost immediately, running as fast as his short legs could carry him. "Sting-kun!" he cried, sliding on his knees the last few inches to his Dragon Slayer, who was lying on the ground in a pool of blood.

"Sting-kun!" he sobbed, paws on the blonde boy's shoulder. "Sting-kun! Sting-kun! Sting-kun!"

"It's no use." Lucy whispered, sitting up straight. "I'm sorry, Lector."

Lector glanced at her, noting the strip of white in her hair. "Is that...Sting-kun's power...?"

Lucy's hands, blood stained, curled into fists on Sting's chest. "He gave it to me, with his last breaths." She took a deep, shuddering breath and looked up at the cat, brown eyes shining with fury and tears.

"With Sting's power, the power given to me by Estrella, and my Spirits...I will kill them."

* * *

**Well. Sorry for such a short chapter, guys, but I got the feeling you wanted to know what happened, so...**

**Next Chapter: Lucy's Resolve**


	13. Lucy's Resolve

"We have to leave."

"No." "Never."

"Lucy, Lector, we have to leave. Warren got in touch with us and told us where the guilds, guards, and princess have taken refuge. We need to go so that we can get up to speed on what's going on, and start working on catching those bastards." Rufus knelt down behind Lucy, putting his hands on her shoulders, as Rogue put his hand on Lector's head.

"We have to take him with us." Lucy replied, clutching Sting's bloodstained shirt tightly. "I will not leave him here."

"Technically speaking, he will slow us down. Plus, if I am right about where we're headed, there won't be anywhere for him to...go." Rufus glanced up at Rogue, who was staring down at Sting, then at Orga, who shrugged helplessly.

"We will _not _leave him here." Lucy snarled. "Either he goes, or I'll stay with him."

With a sigh, Orga said, "Drop it, Rufus. I'll carry him, and we'll figure out what to do when we get there." With that, he stepped forward, putting his hand on Lucy's shoulder after Rufus backed away. "Lucy, move and I'll get him. Alright?"

The blonde gave one nod then staggered to her feet. Rufus stepped up beside her, putting an arm around her shoulders to steady her. The two of them stared at her bloody hands for a moment before she shrugged his arm away, and he turned his head towards Orga, who was holding Sting. Lector was curled up on the dead boy's stomach, crying softly.

"Here." Rogue said, and Lucy looked up to see him offering her his cloak, since she hadn't fought with hers on. She took it, fastened it around her neck, and pulled it around her so she wouldn't have to see her bloodstained hands or clothes. Krys, who was being held by Froche beside Rogue, held her arms out to Lucy.

The blonde turned away from her Exceed. "Lead the way please, Rufus."

Rogue picked up Froche and Krys, shaking his head at the trembling young Exceed. "Give her time."

Froche looked up at Rogue at his even tone. "Rogue is not sad?"

Rogue closed his eyes for a moment, then took a deep breath. "I...I have to keep it together, until we're with the others." He reopened his eyes to see his friends moving away from him; Rufus was leading with Orga right behind him, holding Sting and Lector. Lucy was trailing behind far enough that Rogue easily caught up.

"The first thing we should do," Lucy said, voice void of emotion, when he caught up, "is get the citizens out. Daman implied that he wanted to kill the guild members and the princess first, so most of the guilds should escort citizens out, relocate them, and split up the cities around here between themselves. A few guilds can stay here, work on getting those three - and any others - split up so we can take them down."

"The first thing we should do is honor our dead." Rogue countered, softly.

Lucy did not reply.

* * *

"This is the place." Rufus stopped in front of one of the castle walls, where a picture of what looked like Hell was etched, bright white against the black stone. It had taken the group one nerve racking hour to creep through the ghost town that was Crocus - the residents were either gone or hiding in their homes - to get to the castle, and everyone sincerely hoped Rufus was correct.

The blonde man reached out, brushing his fingertips across the stone. "Aperite portas, et inferni*." he murmured. With a small grinding noise, a section of the wall about six feet high and three feet wide opened up, and Rufus ushered everyone in before following behind him, muttering something that made the doors slide shut.

The group was temporarily thrown into darkness until, with a sudden sound that made everyone but an emotionless Lucy jump, torches on the wall lit all the way down the hallway.

"We should just have to walk down this tunnel, and we'll meet with the others." Rufus said, voice echoing despite the fact that his voice was soft.

Without another word, Lucy began to walk. The rest shared a look, and Krys whimpered softly, "Lucy..."

"Fro thinks Lucy is too sad right now." Froche touched Krys' head gently. "Fro thinks we should let Lucy walk by herself."

Orga glanced down at Sting, in his arms, and closed his eyes for a moment. All of them were on the edge of a breakdown, but Lucy - and Lector - had one foot off the cliff, ready to fall. Maybe Froche was right.

Orga opened his eyes.

_Or maybe not._

* * *

"We have enough supplies down here for at least six months...I think." Jura sighed, putting one hand on Lyon's shoulder, and one on Chelia's as the three examined the stores of food, water, medical paraphernalia, and other supplies.. "What say we go back to the rest and see if our missing Sabertooth members have shown up?"

Lyon sighed. "I suppose we should. I just...the king is dead, the princess is closer to a mental breakdown than I've ever seen a person, and now it looks like we'll be living in...what is this place again?"

"It's called the Hell Palace," Jura replied, turning to go and pulling the two young mages around with him. As he began to walk, they followed. "It was made for criminals who tried to escape, but it can also be used in the way that we need it."

"I hate underground places. I'm claustrophobic." Chelia murmured.

"It's the only place that the princess can be safe," Jura replied, as they came in view of hundreds of tents for guards, guild members, and - one, the largest tent - the princess. "You two realize that as much as I do."

The two were silent as the elder member led them to the circle of guild masters, head guards, and the princess and Erza. When he was acknowledged by Hisui, Jura bowed before saying, "I believe there are supplies for perhaps six months. However, I also believe that not all of the guilds should stay in the city; some can escort citizens out and be on the lookout outside the city. If all but, say, three guilds leave, the supplies will double in how long they will hold out."

The princess opened her mouth to say something, but a scream resounded through the cavern, instantly putting everyone on alert.

"Stay here, with the princess." Makarov told Erza, who had tensed but not moved as Hisui cringed toward her.

"Yes, sir," Erza nodded at Makarov, and watched somewhat wistfully as Makarov, Jura, Lyon, Chelia, and two or three guards ran towards the sound.

_What could have possibly happened now?_

* * *

Yukino and Levy sat crosslegged in front of their two guilds - obviously minus a few members each - as they quietly spoke to them. The two girls had run into Blue Pegasus as the guild was moving towards the Hell Palace, and, after learning the news about the king, followed them.

As soon as Yukino realized who was missing, she tried to charge straight back to the arena, only to be stopped by Levy and Gajeel and plopped down in front of the rest of her friends to wait. She had been the first to notice the presence of another Celestial Spirit mage, and now she ran through the Palace at top speed towards the presence, followed closely by a few mages from both her guild and Lucy's old guild.

The pale-haired girl skidded around a rock formation, only to come face to face with a tunnel...and Lucy, wrapped up in Rogue's cloak.

"Lucy!" she cried, jumping forward to wrap her arms around the blonde, who stiffened considerably. "We were so worried! We thought that...that..." she trailed off, staring behind Lucy as Orga came into view, a limp body in his arms.

She, too, froze, arms still around Lucy's neck as she took in the sight of Sting, bloody, pale, and very obviously dead, Lector curled up on his stomach, weeping. A moment after it registered, she jumped backwards, away from Lucy, only to find that she had pushed Rogue's cloak back. Lucy's hands and clothes were red with blood, and she glanced down at her own, white clothes to see the same red there.

She screamed.

Rufus pushed around Rogue and Lucy, reaching Yukino about the same time that her scream cut off into a sob. He put an arm around her shoulder, pulling her into a hug that allowed her to muffle her sobbing into his shirt.

The three other mages stood still as the blonde man whispered softly to Yukino, trying to comfort her to no avail. A moment later, about a dozen people appeared from around the same rock formation as Yukino, looking concerned.

Lucy's eyes flicked over Makarov, Laxus, Gray, Juvia, Natsu, Jura, Lyon, and Chelia in turn, ignoring the guards standing uncomfortably behind them.

Makarov stepped forward, eyes locked onto the sobbing Yukino and Rufus, whose shell was slowly cracking; a tear slid down his face and he shook his long blonde hair forward to hide it, although no one could miss the shaking of his body as he sobbed.

"What has happened?" Fairy Tail's master asked, turning to Lucy. His eyes widened as she held out her bloody hands, eyes blank. "Sting's dead." she replied, in a monotone, half gesturing behind her. The entire group gasped as she took a half step to the left, revealing Orga and Sting's limp body.

"We - Sting and I - met the people responsible for the king's death. Daman seems to be their leader. Asura is the one who killed the king; he's a sharpshooter. They had a woman named Lilith with them; she created a barrier that kept the five of us in and others out, and transported them away. They said something about killing off the guilds and royalty, then returning Zeref to this land. Not only have they killed His Majesty and Sting, but my dragon, Estrella, as well." Lucy explained this all in a robotic voice, not looking at anyone as she did so.

"What will we do?" Jura asked, and Lyon glanced at him in surprise; never had the Ice Make mage heard such horror and - even more frightening - defeat in the elder man's voice.

"As many guilds as we can spare should take the citizens out of the city and the surrounding hundred miles. Sabertooth will stay in an attempt to find Daman and his followers. Perhaps one or two other guilds can stay." Lucy replied, meeting his eyes.

The elderly man glanced away from her eyes; the rest of her face was like stone, but her eyes were full of agony.

"Juvia wishes to stay," Juvia's eyes flicked from Sting to Lucy. "No. _I _wish to stay, here with you, Lucy. I am not very close to your new guild, but you are an old comrade of mine and I will help you."

"Juvia is right; Fairy Tail will stay." Makarov agreed.

"Lamia Scale, too," Jura stated. "We'll start working on getting the other guilds assigned to parts of the city to evacuate. We should probably set up watches, too, around the city. Who will - "

"I will take a watch," Lucy interrupted. "We should have six people out at a time; two for the city's outer ring, two for the area around the castle, and two in between. Loke and I can take the outer ring."

"I'll take the in-between," Gray piped up. "Juvia, you in?"

"Yes." the blue haired girl nodded.

"Then it's settled; Cheria and I have the area around the castle." Lyon nodded at the young girl, who nodded back with determination.

"This planning is great and all, but I"m under the impression that you don't need to take a watch just yet, Blondie," Laxus interrupted suddenly. "Let one member each from Fairy Tail and Lamia Scale take the outer ring."

Lucy cut her eyes at the taller blonde. "I'm perfectly fine." she said, stiffly.

"You found out that one of your friends was murdered and watched another of your friends _be _murdered," Laxus shook his head. "You need time to grieve."

Lucy opened her mouth to spit out a reply, but Jura said, "I believe that Makarov-dono is the best to decide who does what when, for he is very wise. Makarov-dono?"

The elderly man looked guilty, but he said, "Laxus is right. No Sabertooth members are to leave the Hell Palace until further notice; Mirajane and Sherry can take the outer ring. Orga, you need to follow me. Rufus, take Yukino to the rest of your guild and inform them. Lucy and Rogue, take Lector, Froche, and Krys and either join Sabertooth or Fairy Tail."

Lucy stared at the ground. "I want to be alone," she said, turning in the opposite direction that Laxus pointed out to Rufus, Yukino, and Rogue. "If I need something, Loke will babysit me."

"I want to go with Lucy." a dull voice said, and everyone glanced at Lector, who was now sitting up, in surprise. They were even more surprised when Lucy turned and opened her arms to the cat, who flew over, snuggling into her embrace.

"We'll be just over here," the blonde girl nodded in the direction she'd been planning to go. "We'll join you in a little while."

No one stopped her.

* * *

Lucy found a small space in between two large stones where she sat, feeling as if she were in her own little private nook. Only then, with her face shadowed and sound muffled did she allow herself to cry, but only slow tears that rolled down her cheeks and nose.

Lector sobbed brokenly, snuggled into Lucy's lap, until he fell asleep, Lucy stroking his fur. Right after he fell asleep, in a small flash of light, Loke appeared. He sat shoulder-to-shoulder with his Master, both silent until he said,

"I'm sorry, Lucy. About Sting..."

"He was like my big brother," Lucy murmured, still stroking Lector's fur as she fought to control the grief welling up inside her. "Or my little brother, depending how you want to look at it. Rogue, Rufus, and Orga, too. I swore that I wouldn't get attached so that I could leave more easily, but I wanted to be loved...and now I have nowhere to go. Estrella is dead." her hand stilled, then went up to her neck where the little container of poison rested.

"She gave this to me, this poison that could kill seven hundred men, even though she didn't want to. I know you don't like it, either, nor do any of the other Spirits. And I...I'm starting to dislike it." Lucy took and let out a deep breath. "I will not use it. I will willingly pay the price that I accepted, even though I will be so helpless at the end. And before that end...I will kill Daman."

Loke, with a sad smile, asked, "And your friends?"

"I will tell them; they deserve to know." the blonde replied. "But right now...I can't..."

Loke started to wrap his arm around his master, but froze when he heard footsteps approaching, tensing. He relaxed slightly when a soft call reached his ears.

"Blondie?"

"That's Laxus," the lion Spirit said, unnecessarily. "I'm going back to tell the others about your decision; he will comfort you."

"But Loke - " she began to protest, but Loke called out, "She's here, Laxus." before pressing his lips to her temple lightly, and vanishing.

Laxus appeared a moment later, resting his forearms against the two rocks and leaning forward, acting almost as another rock, making Lucy feel slightly claustrophobic in her little space. "How are you holding up, Bl - Lucy?"

"What do you care?" Lucy challenged.

"We've been through this already - I care for you. Plus, you've just been through something that would be traumatic to anyone. So, tell me. How are you?"

"My dragon is dead, my partner is dead, and I've been informed that the ones who did it also killed the king and are planning on doing the same to all of my friends and family. How do you think I'm doing?"

Laxus smiled sadly. "I don't know where this side of you came from - you're so ready to snap, to fight. What happened to the Lucy who was strong enough to admit she was feeling weak?"

"She's six feet under, just like people I love!" Lucy's voice rose to a near shriek. "Why don't _you _think about how you'd feel if Makarov and Freed or Bixlow or Ever were to die! You would be furious, bloodthirsty, ready to kill whoever had done it! Now take those feelings and multiply, because if you were in the same situation, you'd know that you were going to die in less than four months!"

Laxus stayed straight faced until this point; his face faltered near the end of her final sentence. "So that's what it is," he said, softly. "THe price of the spell you had to cast to save yourself and Natsu." He removed one of his arms from the rock it was on and reached into the nook.

Lucy drew back, but there was only so far she could go before she hit the rock behind her. As it was, she still cringed when Laxus' hand - large and calloused - touched her cheek gently.

"In the close future," he said quietly, "we will deal with Daman, Asura, Lilith, and their followers. After, we will save you. Fairy Tail, Sabertooth, and your Spirits will not allow you to die.

"And now?" Lucy asked, swallowing back the sobs that were making her chest feel tight.

"Now, you can grieve." Laxus' thumb brushed away a tear that escaped her eye. "I promise you, the pain will only fester and grow until you let it out. Cry, Lucy. I will protect you."

Lucy closed her eyes, and let down her walls. Her body shook and her cries echoed as she let the pain surface and bubble out, and when Laxus pulled her close, her face buried in his shirt, she did not protest.

_Estrella...Sting..._

The blonde allowed herself to cry until her eyes could no longer produced dears, then leaned away from Laxus, brushing her tears from her eyes and adjusting the somehow-still-sleeping Lector in her lap. She dropped her still-bloody hands to her sides, then, realizing that she might have smudged some red on her face.

"I - I need to..." she flopped her hands.

"I know. I'll be right back; the first watch should be returning."

He left, and Lucy did not understand what he'd meant until Juvia appeared, face and eyes gentle and full of compassion as she scooted into the little nook beside Lucy, taking the blonde's hands in her own.

The waterwoman hummed soothingly as she used her magic to cleanse Lucy's hands, then her face, the back of her neck, and her hair. Levy appeared a short while later, holding clothes. She and Lucy traded their burdens - Lector for the clothes - and the two blue-haired woman kept watch as their friend changed, pulling all of her hair but the white streak back into a ponytail; this excess hair framed the right half of her face.

"Laxus told everyone about _Deux lux Mea_," Levy said, once she'd turned back to her old friend and handed her the fitfully sleeping Exceed.

"He must have heard mine and Loke's conversation." the blonde replied, her voice uneven but her expression steady; both of the girls she faced were relieved that her eyes - although still pained - were not as agony filled as they'd feared.

"Juvia knows that you are still upset, but Juvia thinks that you should come and eat with the rest of us. Rufus, Orga, Yukino, and Rogue have also wept, and Juvia thinks that they need to be with you so that you may all share your pain. Juvia thinks this will help you all." Juvia piped up, after a moment.

"That's a good idea, Juvia." Lucy smiled - just a small smile, but still a smile. It faltered as she said, "I need to explain to everyone all that _I _know about _Deux lux Mea _and Daman, Asura, and Lilith. We'll need that information if we are to find them."

"It won't be all that difficult to find them, although getting to them might be a different story." a voice piped up to the girls' left, and they all turned to see Jura standing there. He quickly assessed Lucy before saying, "Come. There is something you need to see."

* * *

**Guys, I'm so sorry for the wait! School starts for me tomorrow (in 15 hours, to be exact), so it will be like this (few updates with lots of space in between) until probably Christmas. I hope you all enjoy this next chapter, and I look forward to giving you the next!**

**Next Chapter Name: Obsidian Palace**

*** - 'Open, gates of Hell.'**

**** - Chapter title refers to Lucy's decision to not use the poison she was given, to tell her friends about ****_Deux lux Mea_****, and her acceptance of the powers Sting gave her (when she put back her hair.)**


	14. Obsidian Palace

"Good God..." Lyon breathed, as he, Jura, Chelia, Lucy, Levy, and Juvia stared at the imposing structure they could see in the distance, its black walls glinting even in the now-darkness.

The six mages were standing on a balcony of the large, white palace of Crocus that overlooked the small garden behind it; bordering the small patch of green grass and rainbow flowers was a wall similar to the one that had admitted the Sabertooth mages into the Hell palace. Beyond _that _was a large expanse of land that was clear of any sort of building...or, at least, it _should _have been clear.

Now, perhaps four miles out, a large, black palace that seemed like an exact copy of the one beneath their feet loomed. As far as the mages could tell in the dark, every window, door, or decoration was exactly the same.

"That's it," Lucy's fists clenched. "That's got to be where Daman is. He's right _there_. We need to attack!"

"No." Jura said, more harshly than he'd intended, turning towards her. "That would be exactly what that devil wants - you to go barging in. There are bound to be traps everywhere, and, anyway, how would you navigate through the palace? How would you know where he was?"

Lucy crossed her arms, glaring straight back into Jura's eyes, unwavering. "Simple; I sniff him out. Or Asura, or Lilith. One thing I know is that they'll all be together. And as for the traps, I'll get Lector to fly me over or around them; it's my duty to take care of him now, anyway."

Jura shook his head firmly. "No, Lucy. Right now, we need to strategize - "

"If we waste our time strategizing, Aura will start picking us off, one by one!" Lucy shouted, eyes flashing and an aura of white and gold flaring up around her. "We need to make a move - and quickly!"

Lyon held his hands up placatingly, taking a step towards Lucy. "Be careful," he warned. "You're not used to your new strength yet. Just calm down, and let's all head back down to the Hell Palace. I don't like being out here."

Lucy snarled at Jura and Lyon in turn, but the aura around her died down as she whipped around and stalked back into the coolness of the castle, Juvia and Levy rushing behind her with soothing words and comforting touches.

Cheila bristled. "Hmph. I'd like to teach her a lesson."

"Drop it, Chelia," Jura said sharply, making the young girl jump. "Lucy has been through a lot; more than the rest of us at the moment. She has grieved, but now the anger is rising in her. She - and the rest of Sabertooth's team, really - need to stay in the Hell Palace until we're sure that they can make rational decisions."

The God Slayer frowned, then sighed. "She could still be nicer..."

* * *

Later that night, still unallowed to take a route through the city, Lucy on her back, staring up at the beige fabric of her tent with eyes wide open. On her right was Levy, curled into a ball, and even further to the right was Juvia, who occasionally murmured something that sounded like 'Gray-sama.' Yukino was on the blonde's left, back to her fellow Celestial Spirit mage.

The silence was stifling; both Sabertooth girls knew the other was awake.

"Hey...Yukino?" Lucy finally asked, softly.

There was a soft rustling sound, and then Yukino turned over, blue eyes meeting brown. "Yes, Lucy?"

The blonde reached out, touching Yukino's sleeping bag where she thought that the other girl's shoulder was. "I wanted to tell you...about what you were going to research. _Deux lux Mea_." Yukino opened her mouth, but Lucy shook her head. "Don't interrupt, please. I want to tell you, first, and tomorrow I want to tell the rest. _Deux lux Mea _is a spell that - "

"Targets the evil in people and destroys it, turning their body to stone. The spell isn't cast often because the price that must be paid is your life - all but a year, that it." Yukino put in, softly. "Levy and I found out. We were on our way back to tell everyone when...when everything happened."

Lucy's expression became sad. "So you and Levy know...does anyone else?"

"No." Yukino shook her head as best as she was able, lying down. "But I think it's a good thing that you want to tell everyone." She wiggled around a bit in her sleeping bag, freeing her arm so that she could grab Lucy's hand. "You...are going to defeat Daman, right?"

Lucy squeezed her fingers. "Yes. As much as I hate to wait, Jura is right; barging into that palace would be a mistake. But I _will _defeat Daman and Asura. With the power of my Spirits, Estrella's power, and Sting's power, I'll do it. I promise."

Yukino smiled sadly, chin quivering as tears rolled out of her right eye and across her nose, joining the stream of tears from her left eye. "Thank you."

The two girls, still holding hands, fell asleep as the camp finally quieted down, everyone in their sleeping bags with the exception of the night patrols, who would not be back for some hours.

Only one shadowy figure, perhaps only a foot in height, was moving, making its way through the maze of tents and pushing back the flap of the one it was looking for. Carefully, it stepped around familiar women, stepping over their joined hands with great care as it reached for the object it needed; the little vial around the blonde's neck. She was so deeply asleep that it was easy for the figure to snap the chain; object acquired, the figure allowed wings to sprout from its back. It hopped into the air and silently gliding out of the tent. He had not been seen...

...Or so he'd thought. The golden eyes of the little white and gold cat curled in the corner of the tent saw everything, but thought nothing of it. After all, what did it matter to her if Lector took something from Lucy? The blonde mage had yet to even look at her since her return. No, Krys thought, it didn't matter. After all, a little vial of clear liquid - water? - wouldn't hurt him at all...

* * *

Rogue, Froche, Rufus, Juvia, and Levy all reached the breakfast set up at the same time the next morning.

"Those two are still sleeping?" Rogue asked, nodding towards their tent. "I don't think either of them have eaten since breakfast yesterday; they must be famished."

Juvia smiled softly. "They are sleeping away. Juvia thinks they must have had an important talk in the night that Levy and Juvia didn't hear; they're holding hands."

"With the way the two of them and Sting were connected, it's no surprise. They need each other to grieve and move forward." Rufus nodded to himself as he accepted a plate of hot food from Mira with a grateful expression. "How're the patrols?" he asked the white-haired woman.

"Freed and Bixlow went out this morning to replace the outer ring, Jura and a girl he called Isabelle went out to the middle ring, and Evergreen and Cana are in the inner ring. A fourth patrol has started on the top floor of the castle, keeping watch on the Obsidian Palace." she replied, handing food to her fellow guild members and Rogue, who had a little extra to share with Froche.

The mages were halfway through their food when Lucy and Yukino stumbled over, Lucy holding Krys tightly in her arms. Both cat and owner looked like they had been crying, but no one said a word as they sat down. _(Krys and Lucy between Levy and Rogue and Yukino between Rogue and Rufus)_

"Good morning!" Froche jumped onto Lucy's leg, grinning up at her, then at Krys. Both smiled sleepily at him in return.

"Here," Mira held a plate out to the two Celestial mages. "You two need to eat and get woken up; we're having a meeting at nine to start planning a course of action."

Both nodded before Lucy asked, "Has anyone seen Lector? I left him in my tent last night before we went up to the balcony. He wasn't there when I came back, but I thought it was because he went to go see you, Rogue."

Rogue looked puzzled. "No, I haven't seen him since we first got here. Froche?"

The cat shook his head. "Fro hasn't," he answered, hopping up from Rogue's lap. "But Fro is done eating for now, so Fro will go look for Lector!" With that, he grinned at the mages smiling kindly at him before hopping into the air, wings materializing as he swooped off.

"Don't get lost!" Rogue called after him, worriedly. "I'll be able to find you, but it might take a while with how big this place is!"

"Fro understands!" the cry came, softer, since the little Exceed was almost out of sight.

"We should get along to the meeting, now." Mira glanced at a watch on her wrist that Lucy didn't know she had; a further sniff told the blonde that it was actually Freed's watch, and it made her crack a genuine smile.

"We'll carry our food along," Lucy said, as she stood.

Mira looked hesitant. "Are you sure it's a good idea...?" she asked, slowly, looking embarrassed at having to ask the question.

Lucy's smile faltered, then died, and the rest of the Sabertooth's expressions followed suit.

"We'll be fine," Rufus said, softly. "I think we've all realized that revenge will probably get us killed. Working with everyone with a plan is a better idea for everybody involved."

Mira nodded, slowly. "Alright then. Let's go."

* * *

By the time the mages arrived, arguments were flying back and forth at a rapid pace. It was hard to tell, since the voices were overlapping, but Lucy figured out that it was Jura, Makarov, and Erza versus the guards.

"We should attack straight on! Now!" the head guard shouted, red in the face. "They've already killed a dozen guards, a handful of citizens, and even one of Sabertooth's mages!" Right after he said this, his eyes caught sight of the Sabertooth mages who'd just arrived and he glanced down, embarrassed.

"That's a good way to lose even more people." Erza - at what looked like her new permanent spot beside the princess - crossed her arms. "I refuse to do such a stupid thing and watch my friends and family die around me."

"Erza-san is right. We need strategy." Jura nodded. "The land out there is cleared, so it's not like we can sneak up on them. They're too smart for that, anyway. There's a young woman in our guild who could cast an invisibility spell, but it can only cover a maximum of eight people, including herself. What eight people would we choose to go? How could we know they'd all come back?"

The wheels in Lucy's head were already turning. "We won't; we'd have to have faith in them." she said, making all the eyes turn to her as she tightened her hands into fists. "Me, Rogue, Erza, Rufus, Laxus, Yukino, Jura, and the girl can go. If she can't fight, we'll find somewhere safe for her. With all the people I've named, it'll be child's play to distract them long enough for everyone else to come."

"You've forgotten one thing," a guard - not the head, but close to it - interjected. "That obsidian monstrosity is an exact copy of the palace we're currently under. Do any of you know it well enough to get around? If we're right about this Daman guy, he'll be in the throne room, no doubts about that."

"I want to go." a soft voice said, and every head whipped around to stare in shock at the princess, who'd spoken for the first time since her father's death. She looked scared, but continued on after a glance at Erza. "I know this castle like the back of my hand, so I will go, instead of Jura-san. I can take them straight through to the throne room."

"Your safety - " the head guard began.

"Is taken care of. Erza-nee and the others are very powerful, and I trust them all." the princess cut him off. "If Lamia Scale's mage agrees, then she, Lucy-san, Rogue-san, Rufus-san, Yukino-san, Laxus-san, Erza-nee and I will go, now."

Lucy had been getting more and more anxious as the princess spoke, but even she drew back at the word 'now.'

"Princess, we've already talked about rushing into things..." Erza began uneasily.

"I trust you, all of you." Hisui shook her head. "Your hearts are filled with grief but your minds are clear. I am the same."

"This could be a good compromise." Rufus said, carefully. "We're not charging in a way that would get many uselessly killed, but we're taking action quickly. If we're careful..."

Everyone considered this for a moment.

Makarov sighed. "I agree with the plan, no matter how uneasy it makes me. Are those involved willing?"

"All of us are. We just need to ask Laxus and..." - Lucy glanced at Jura, who supplied, "Rin." - "Rin. And if I know Laxus like I think I do, he'll be chomping at the bit to go."

"Rin will be up for it, as well. She wants to be of assistance as much as she can." Jura bobbed his head. "Now, let's go and converse with the two we've mentioned. Meet back up here in an hour so we can go over a few more details, alright?"

Everyone included nodded.

Lucy spun around on her heel, glancing over her shoulder at Makarov. "Laxus is...?"

"Look in his tent; he had the late watch." the elderly man replied.

The blonde nodded. "Thanks." she bobbed her head before taking off in that direction.

Before she got more than a few strides, however, something small crashed into her chest with enough force to make her stumble backwards, into Rogue's arms. (He'd been running after her.) Krys, who'd been on her shoulder, fell to the ground with a small cry. Yukino retrieved her as Lucy tried to make heads or tails of the sobbing creature in her arms.

"Froche?" Lucy asked, and the cat let out a high wail. "What's wrong?"

Rogue's arms steadied the girl, then vanished as he darted around the blonde to snatch his Exceed out of her arms, cradling him close. "What's happened, Froche?" the Shadow Dragon Slayer asked, voice anxious.

"L - Lector." the cat finally managed. "On those rocks...that look like a little room..."

_The rocks where I sat yesterday? _Lucy wondered. When Froche gave another, shuddering sob, Lucy leaped once again into a run, away from Laxus' tent and towards where the Exceed had said his friend was. _Lector..._

* * *

Laxus was making his way towards the morning's meeting, yawning, when he saw Lucy running in his direction like she was being chased. "Hey, Blondie - " he began, but she ignored him and kept going, towards the place he'd found her the day before. A second later, the blonde Memory Make mage appeared. The two blondes shared a look, then ran after the girl.

When she shrieked out something that sounded like the name of Sting's cat, they both sped up, skidding to a stop when they saw her, hands over her mouth, taking a step backwards from the rocks.

Laxus was at her side in a second, and she grabbed onto his shirt, burying her face in his chest. "It's my fault." she cried. "I thought he was asleep! I thought...and he...I should have stayed with him! I should have told everyone! I should have let Loke take that stupid bottle!"

Rufus approached the rocks, glanced in, swallowed, and then reached in. He took a step back and turned towards the Dragon SLayer, an Exceed limp in his arms. The little cat's paw was clutching something, but it fell to the ground, and both men saw that it was a small, glass bottle, a little bit of liquid still sloshing about in it. It looked like the little thing that Lucy had been wearing around her neck every day except - both of them realized suddenly - today.

"He's dead." the Sabertooth man said, unnecessarily, glancing at the cat in his arms. With a look on his face that spoke of his pain, he hugged the little body close to his chest.

Lucy made a small sound of pain, and Laxus pushed her away gently, hating that he had to do so in order to pick up the little bottle. It took him barely a whiff to know what it was. "Attor poison!" He whipped around to stare at the blonde girl, who seemed to be getting ahold of herself. "Just a sip cold kill a hundred men; a bottle this size could kill everyone here! Why did you have this!?"

"It's all my fault..." she whispered, in reply. "Everything...If I hadn't agreed to go on that mission with Natsu, if I hadn't cast that spell...I wouldn't be dying. If I hadn't run away and met Estrella, she might still be alive. If I hadn't had that poison...Lector..."

Laxus froze, one word echoing in his head. Once glance at Rufus confirmed that the Memory Make mage was just as alarmed. "D..dying?" he asked, lowly. "Lucy-san, what do you mean..."

She stared at the ground. "Now." she said, fingers curling into fists. "We need to go meet with everyone who's here _now_. There are things I have to say before we attempt this crazy mission."

A single tear slid down her face. _Everything's my fault._

* * *

**Guys, I'm so sorry for the long wait! Just to put things in perspective, I'm starting my third week of school tomorrow and I have two major projects due tomorrow and Tuesday and three major tests - one tomorrow, one Tuesday, and one Thursday. Plus, I'm working on a lot of stuff for volunteer work. Things are crazy! I hope you guys will wait for me, because I really won't be able to right a lot until Fall/Christmas break!**

**I know you guys are all biting at the bit for some revenge, but next chapter we'll still be in Hell Palace. After that, though, I'm confident that we'll be getting close to the major butt-whooping (and the end of the story)!**

**Next Chapter: I'm Sorry (Vanish)**


	15. I'm Sorry (Vanish)

**Short, crappy chapter alert! I'm so sorry guys, but I couldn't do much here without getting into the next chapter! Next is a fight, so it'll take a little longer. (God I'm so sorry all of this is being dragged out; I've wanted to quit so many times.) I hope to have the next chapter up ASAP!**

* * *

No one moved as Lucy spoke. No one moved when she was finished speaking. The blonde simply stared into the blank eyes of her old friends, old family, new friends, new family, and complete strangers as they stared blankly back at her.

"I'm really sorry that I sprang this on you, now, when we're about to depart on a mission that not all of us might return from. I just...Lector's death was my fault. If I had never accepted the poison, he..." she clenched her fists, then relaxed them, arms hanging limply by her side. "I'm sorry."

Erza reacted first, by standing and walking over to Lucy, who eyed her warily. She had good reason; with no warning, the Titania struck out at Lucy, who threw an arm up in defense; even then, she skidding back several feet.

When she peered over her arm, she was startled. Erza was crying...from both eyes. The red head jumped forward to wrap her arms around Lucy, pulling her close. "You're so stupid," Titania wept. "We love you, you stupid idiot, and we would have wanted to help you...we still want to help you!" She pushed Lucy back to arms length and said firmly, "We're all going to survive this, and then we're going to find a way to save you; we lost you once, and we won't lose you again!"

Shaky faces and raging emotions composed themselves and ebbed, respectively, as the others fought for a grip on this new information.

"Titania's right," Gajeel grunted, putting one arm around a teary Levy. "Let's get all of this over with and then we'll fix you up, blondie. After that, though, I'm going to beat you to a pulp for not telling us. Alright?"

Lucy's lip trembled and tears spilled down her face, but she nodded, and Erza released her from her iron grip so both women could wipe their tears.

The princess, Hisui, took a step forward, putting a hand on Erza's shoulder. "Erza-nee, I realize everyone is upset, but it is time..."

"No, it's alright, Hime-sama." Erza smiled gently at the younger girl, though the smile was watery. The red-head glanced over the princess to Jura. "Is Rin ready and willing to help us?"

A figure stepped around Jura. "I'm Rin," she introduced herself, black hair swinging as she nodded. Her blue eyes went from one person to another, acknowledging them all. "If you are prepared, I am prepared."

The other involved mages all shared a glance before Lucy nodded to the girl. "Let's get started."

* * *

"We'll all have to stay close together," Rin explained, as she and the others stood at the entrance/exit to Hell Palace that they would be using. "If you get more than fifty meters away from me, you'll become visible again. It's a little unnerving, at first, but you'll get used to not being able to see yourself. Any questions?" She was met with silence, so she shrugged. "Alright. Just remember that if you want to stay with someone, you'll have to hold on to them."

Instantly, the mages shifted around; Erza put her hand on one of Hisui's arms, Laxus taking the other. Rogue clamped his hand on Rufus' shoulder, and Yukino grabbed Lucy's wrist.

"Alright. Here goes." Rin closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and began to chant.

* * *

"Now that they know where we are, it's only a matter of time before they get here." Lilith said gleefully, bouncing on the balls of her feet. "I can't wait!"

Asura rolled his eyes, stroking the gun in his lap lovingly.

"Do not ridicule her, Asura." Daman, seated in an obsidian throne in the middle of the large room, smiled to himself. "You are just as eager for blood as your sister."

The man's fingers curled into fists, his knuckles white. "Do not remind me that we are related," he muttered, before his muscles relaxed.

Daman simply threw his head back and laughed.

* * *

"Seriously, idiot, this is the fifth round. I. Don't. Have. Threes." the guard, dressed in all black except for a bloodred guild symbol composed of strange geometric figures crowded together on his back, glared at his fellow, who looked exactly the same, minus the fact that the first had black hair and the second was blonde.

The second scowled. "There's no way you don't have threes." he accused. "You just don't want me to win, that's all."

"Sorry to interrupt, gentlemen, but I need to kill a few people."

Both men froze as the female voice came out of nowhere. They shared a horrified look before the first relaxed. "All right, Itzel, that's not funny."

"I think you've mistaken us for someone else." a second voice, female again, commented. The guards didn't even have a chance to look at one another again before something hit them both in the back of the head, with a loud, audible _crack_. Both slumped onto the table before them, scattering the cards onto the stone floors.

"I think that'll do it, Rin." a male voice came, sounding slightly amused, and as one, eight people shimmered into existence. Laxus, who'd spoken, ruffled the young girl's hair rather gently, and she scowled at him.

"Let's not mess around, you two." Lucy scolded, gesturing at Erza and Hisui, who were bent over a map of what looked to be the castle. Erza was pouring a small amount of power into her fingertip; once Hisui got her bearings and knew how to get where the throne room was located, she recited instructions to Erza, whose glowing finger left a trail on the paper.

"So we'll all need to stay together for this - " Erza began to spewek, but before she could get very far, an explosion rocked the room, sending everyone flying.

Screams ripped through the air, seemingly mostly from Hisui, who'd never had any experience with fighting, and Rin, who was closest to the explosion when it happened.

When the dust cleared, Laxus, arm around someone and body protecting theirs, looked up. The walls had caved in, and he and the person curled close to his body were cut off from the others.

THe person began to cough, trying to get the dust out of their lungs. "L-Laxus?"

"So I'm stuck with you, eh, Blondie?" Laxus said lightly, as he rolled away from Lucy. "How delightful; it'll be fun to be on the other end of that power of yours."

"Shut up," Lucy pushed herself up, brushing the streak of white hair that had escaped from her ponytail behind her ear. "Minna?" she called, raising her voice. "Are you alright?"

A voice came a moment later, from somewhere to the two blondes' right. "I'm good, but Rin is unconscious."

"Erza," Lucy murmured to herself. "That's the two of us, her, Rin..." She raised her voice. "Anyone else!?"

"Me!" a nervous voice, Yukino, called. "I'm with the Princess, and we're both a little dusty, but mostly alright."

"That leaves...Rogue? Rufus?" Lucy called out once again.

"I'm alright, and alone." the Shadow Dragon SLayer's voice was so faint the other Dragon Slayers barely heard it. "I have no idea where Rufus is - "

"I'm quite alright. I'm in the spote where we entered the castle, and I have the map. I'll try to make my way to you, Rogue, because I can hear your voice the best." Rufus cut it suddenly.

"Okay, guys, that's everyone. NOw listen up!" Lucy shouted to make sure she was heard. "Laxus and I are headed towards the throne room; Erza, you and Yukino try and get to each other so that you can find a place for Rin and the princess. After that, meet up with someone or head to the throne room to find us. Rufus, you already said you'd meet up with Rogue. Any questions?" She was met with silence.

"Alright then. Let's go."

* * *

**Next chapter: Yukino vs. Asura**


	16. Yukino vs Asura

**So it looks really fun to reply to reviews in the chapters, so I'm going to start doing that. The review-responses for last chapter will be at the bottom!**

* * *

"Are you alright, Hime-sama?" Yukino turned away from the crumbled wall towards the princess, who was holding her head with a look of pain in her eyes.

"I - I think so," the young girl said, shakily. "My head really hurts...Ow!" She exclaimed in pain as Yukino gently pulled her hand away and touched the wound with a feather-soft touch.

The Celestial Mage cringed. "It's a head wound, so it's going to bleed quite a lot, but I don't think it's that bad. Just...sit there while I try and think of a plan - !" Yukino didn't get to finish her sentence, for...

"Watch out!" Hisui cried out, tackling Yukino to the floor. A moment later, something hit the ceiling above their heads with an explosion much like the first, causing the rock to crumble.

"You watch out!" the elder girl retaliated, grabbing the younger's arm. Together, they rolled out of the way of the debris, both coughing because of the dust. Suddenly, a furious snarl rose above their hacking.

"Stupid light Guild brats! I can't believe I didn't kill any of you with that first shot! That stupid blonde only took one of my bullets, but you idiots have already taken two!"

Yukino froze, her eyes wide. _Blonde...took one...bullet...This is the man who killed Sting!_

* * *

_Flashback, a few weeks ago..._

"Sooo it's Valentine's Day~" Yukino jumped as Lucy cooed this statement into her ear, followed by a chuckle. "Who'd you make chocolate for, Yu-ki-no-chan?"

"D - don't say my name like that!" the light haired girl's face turned red as the blonde sat beside her. "Anyway, I didn't make chocolate for anyone!"

Lucy raised an eyebrow, looking skeptical. "Uh-huh. So what's in your lap, and why did Virgo tell me this morning that you and Libra stayed up _forever _last night cooking?"

Yukino thought she'd melt from embarrassment as her fingers tightened around the package in her hand. "It's nothing, really. Just...appreciation."

"Appreciation for S - "

"Yukino? I need to talk to you!"

Both girls jumped as Sting's voice rang through the guild, and their heads turned to see the blonde man himself standing a few feet away, arms crossed. Yukino did not move, and he rolled his eyes. "Come on, _baka_. Let's go for a walk."

_Ohmigod. Ohmigod. It's Valentine's Day and I'm alone with Sting...What could he want? What if he knows I love him? What if he likes me? What if - _

"..no. Yukino?" Hands clamped down on the Celestial mage's shoulders, and she blinked, looking up to meet Sting's eyes, which stared back into hers intently. The poor girl hardly held back a squeak of surprise and a blush.

"Y - yes?" she stammered, and he dropped his hands, taking a step back and putting them in his pockets.

"I needed to ask you something - are those chocolates?" Sting's eyes flicked down to her clasped hands, where the box of chocolates still rested. "Who're they for?"

_You! _she blurted in her mind. "Um..." she began.

"Nevermind, it's not my business. Anyway, I called you out here because I needed to ask you an important question. Okay?" Sting looked at her intently once again, and Yukino nodded mutely, heart racing and a blush rising in her cheeks.

Sting leaned forward, as if ready to tell her a secret, and Yukino did the same, staring at his lips...

"Do you think Lucy will give me chocolates?"

The girl jerked back as if she'd been slapped, and could practically hear the record scratching in her mind. _L...Lucy? _She crushed the box slightly in her hands, stared at the ground for a minute, then lifted her eyes, a false smile in place.

"I don't know."

_End flashback_

* * *

Yukino's fists tightened. _I'll kill him!_

Somewhere in her heart, Hisui knew what the mage before her was about to do, but didn't have the sense to hold the other girl back when she shot to her feet, revealing herself to the enemy.

"You're the one who killed Sting," Yukino said, coldly.

Hisui peeked over the debris that had formed a wall before her, to see a man with pale skin, dark eyes, and dark hair standing there, a gun hanging loosely from his fingers with the muzzle pointed at the ground.

Yukino could care less if the man before her was holding any sort of weapon; she felt as if she could kill him with her bare hands.

"Oh, did you know him?" the man asked. "Perhaps you are his lover?"

"His friend." Yukino spat, after a hesitation.

"Ah, so you were not, but you hoped to be. Worry not, mage - I, Asura, will send you to join your love soon enough."

"Like Hell you will."

* * *

"Everyone will be alright, right?"

Erza smiled to herself. "I didn't know you were awake, Rin."

A small chuckle echoed through the corridor, and the arms around Erza's neck shifted. "I'm rather enjoying being carried; I can't even feel my legs."

"I won't lie to you; you're pretty badly hurt. I'm going to find you as safe of a place as possible so that we can call the rest."

"But we only took out those two guards; the others will be on alert." Rin's weight shifted as she moved her head away from the red-head's shoulder.

"They'll all be in the castle, looking for us, so everyone else will be safe to approach the castle," Erza reassured the younger girl.

Rin hesitated for a few seconds. "But the others, in the castle...will they be alright?"

Erza frowned to herself, but forced her voice to be cheerful when she spoke. "Of course! After all, we're Fairy Tail and Sabertooth!"

* * *

Yukino let out a sharp breath as the shadow whipped against her side, throwing her sideways. She managed to keep her feet, but just barely. _How unfair, _she thought bitterly. _You get a magic gun _and _shadow magic?_

"Come on, mage! Show me your power!" Asura taunted, shadows slithering over the floor towards her faster than a normal human's eyes could keep up. With little warning, they shot up, cutting into Yukino's skin like blades.

"_Aargh_!" Yukino screeched, blindly staggering backwards to get out of the way of the shadow-swords, one of her hands going to her keys.

"Open, Gate of the Hunter - Orion! Open, Thirteenth Gate - Ophiuchus!"

Hisui - she was still crouched behind the debris - gasped as the Spirits appeared, one with a bow already strung; a second later, there was an arrow flying towards Asura. The other Spirit was a snake; it was so large that it made the room feel claustrophobic. It seemed to listen to the order Yukino screamed at it, though, for it lunged towards the dark guild mage.

"He." Asura chuckled a short syllable, brushing the arrow fired from Orion's bow away from him with such ease that Hisui felt she might cry. He grinned confidently at Ophiuchus's approaching form, but...

"_Ack_!" the dark-haired boy's eyes flipped open wide as the snake's head - with the force of several small trains - slammed into his body, flinging him back and into a wall, where his body left a print after he fell to the floor.

Yukino's lips curled into a smirk - very uncharacteristic of her, this expression terrified Hisui - and she said calmly, "Orion, go back. Tell the others that I'm sorry, but I'm breaking my vow...I'm going to kill this man."

The hunter turned towards Yukino in shock, opening his mouth to speak. Before he could, however, a shot rang through the air, and Orion's body was torn as the bullet ripped through him. He vanished into a cloud of golden light as Yukino and Ophiuchus turned their attention back to Asura, who was standing.

"You bitch...I'll _kill _you!"

* * *

"You didn't have to attack me," Rogue sighed, touching his shoulder with a cringe.

Rufus cringed, kneeling beside his friend. "It was an accident; I mistook you for a guard. Are you alright?"

"Other than the fact that I won't be able to use my right arm for a while," Rogue replied, dryly.

"Look, I said - " Rufus cut off abruptly as Rogue tilted his head, as if listening to something. A moment later, Rufus heard it, too. "Swords?" the blonde man asked.

"Erza." Rogue replied, shooing Rufus back so that he could stand. "Come on, we need to meet up with her and Rin." he grunted, as he pulled himself to his feet. The dark haired man clamped his left hand on his shoulder before nodding at Rufus. The two dashed in the direction of the fighting.

It didn't take long to find it; they dashed around to corners - one left, one right - and were suddenly upon the fighting. It was rather one-sided, in the favor of the scarlet haired mage, swords in hand, cutting down guards left and right as a dark-haired figure - Rin - leaned against the wall, bloody legs curled at unnatural angles beneath her.

"On three, yell for Erza to duck." Rufus muttered to Rogue, touching his fingers to his temple.

"What makes you think she'll listen?" the Dragon Slayer challenged.

"When the hell did you get so snarky?" Rufus spat, in reply, biting his lip a second later in regret. He knew exactly why Rogue was being so snarky; Sting had always balanced him out. They had been shadow and light, yin and yang, and now..."Never mind. I'm sorry." Rufus murmured.

"It's nothing." Rogue blinked his eyes furiously, and Rufus didn't comment on how they had started to glisten. "Just...count and I'll yell."

Rufus nodded, then put his hand - it had dropped to his side after he'd snapped at Rogue - back on his forehead. "One...two...three!"

"Erza! Get down!"

Titania didn't even hesitate; she did some strange sort of leap/twist that ended up with her lunging back towards the wall and Rin, using her body to cover the younger girl's.

"Memory Make: White Laser!"

Rogue squinted slightly as the white light bursted from Rufus' figure, shooting towards and swallowing up the guards. There was a brief moment when it seemed like the attack would be useless, but then pure energy exploded around the guards, sending a shockwave throughout the corridor. When the light faded and the dust cleared, Erza looked up from her place on the wall.

"Good one, Rufus. Thank you, Rouge." she said, standing and gently lifting Rin, who was once again unconscious; her legs had been jarred roughly when Erza had had to quickly put her down, and she'd passed out from the pain.

"Let me take her;" Rogue offered. "I can use my magic without moving around too much, so I won't have to put her down to fight."

"Thank you," the Fairy Tail woman sounded grateful as she gently transferred Rin from her arms onto Rogue's back. He cringed when he felt her legs - limp - brush against him. "Her lower back...?"

"There was a large piece of debris...I think that she's...that she won't be able to..." Erza sounded a little choked up as she stopped in the middle of her sentence.

"We understand." Rufus touched Erza's shoulder. "Let's just see if we can find Yukino and Hisui-hime-sama. Lucy and Laxus should be about at the center of the castle, if their noses are as good as they say."

"Yeah...yeah, that's a good idea."

* * *

Yukino was gasping for air, blood dripping and rolling down her skin, pooling if she stood too long. She and Ophiuchus were exhausted and nearly out of power, but both noticed - with satisfaction - that Asura was much the same way.

"You...little...brat." he gasped out, half leaning on his gun for support. "How is that someone like you...?"

"I am fighting for love, and you fight for evil. I will always come out on top." Yukino drew up her remaining strength, lending some to the snake curled protectively around her. "Ophiuchus, this is our last shot! Make it count - go for his throat!"

The snake let out a loud roar of agreement, lunging once more towards the dark haired mage, who weakly raised his gun, looking determined. "I won't...ruin my reputation..."

The man did not even scream as Ophiuchus' teeth tore into his throat, but smiled as Yukino's face turned up into a triumphant grin.

_BANG_

"YUKINO!"

* * *

_**Darkangel-Luv, thanks for your review! This chapter was 'eh' to me, but I'm glad you liked it!**_

_**Sorry, FairyTail123...you'll have to hang on a little longer...there are a few more...**_

_**Well, Myth Magyk Fae, there will be some but-whooping in this chapter and those to come...but this is also a sad chapter...(The next one will be, too)**_

**Guys, please don't hate me~**

**Next Chapter: Last Contract/Rogue vs. Lilith**


	17. Last Contract

Yukino's mouth opened, forming an 'o' shape, her eyes wide. She almost looked like a startled child..with the exception of the crimson spreading across her stomach.

"YUKINO!" Hisui cried out, vaulting herself over the debris she was hiding herself behind without a second thought. She had never really done any sort of physical exercise, but she somehow made it to the lighter haired girl before she hit the floor. The princess grunted as her arms - one hooked under and around her shoulders and the other hooked over her chest - took the celestial mage's weight. Her knees buckled, Yukino's head resting on her shoulder.

"Y - Yukino-chan!" the green-haired woman sobbed, the hand not supporting the woman's weight moving down to her stomach, pressing against the wound that gushed blood. "No..not you, too! Please!"

"I'm..sorry..." Yukino gasped out, voice tight with pain. "But I think that this...is the end of the line for me, Hime-sama."

"Massster!" a stricken voice close to Hisui made her jump, and she cried out as large hands pushed her aside, the same hands catching Yukino's body. The owner of the hands was a man with skin even paler than Asura's; it was truly white, with thin black lines criss-crossing over it, making it look like his arms were scaled. His hair was the color of a starless night sky, and the brief flash of his eyes that Hisui got told her they were the same dark color.

"Ophiuchus...I knew you had a human form...but I've never seen it." Yukino chuckled hoarsely.

"I'll ssstay in my human form all the time, if you jussst don't die!" the Spirit begged, arms tightening around his Master. "You cannot leave usss!"

"There is nothing to stop it." Yukino shook her head weakly. "It's okay, though. I...I can see Sting again. Sting, and Lector."

Ophiuchus opened his mouth as to say something again, but the girl cut him off. "Hand me your key..and Libra and Pisces', too." she ordered. The snake, looking pained, did as she asked, unclipping the three keys from her belt and handing them to her.

Her fingers, pale, curled weakly around them, and she pressed them to her lips. A small magic circle, glowing gold, appeared over the keys. As Hisui watched on, eyes wide, Yukino began to murmur.

"O, Keys, your Master slips into the Beyond, and commands you: Ophiuchus, you must take all of my keys and deliver them to Lucy Heartfilia. Libra, you must take the princess, Hisui E. Fiore, and escort her from this castle to the safety of her own. Pisces, you are to assure that Rogue, Rufus, Erza, and Rin are able to meet. All this I command you, as your master." she managed this, somehow, in one breath, then gasped in a breath of air, power welling up in the keys in her hand. "Last Contract!"

A golden glow began to emanate from the keys, and Ophiuchus held out a shaking hand; when Yukino released her grip on the objects, one flew directly to Ophiuchus. The other two hovered in the air for a moment before touching themselves almost lovingly to Yukino's face.

They stayed there for one, two, three heartbeats, before one vanished in a cloud of gold sparkles. The other bobbed its way over to Hisui, landing in her open palm. As she tightened her fingers around it, the Spirit - Libra - materialized before her, kneeling respectfully. Hisui was not fooled for a moment; she saw the silver tear as it traced a path down the woman's cheek.

With a glance over Libra's shoulder, Hisui saw Ophiuchus stand, gently arranging Yukino's body so that her hands covered her wound and she appeared to be sleeping. After a long, last look at her, the dark haired spirit closed his eyes, and disappeared.

* * *

"Are you okay?"

Lucy blinked rapidly, glancing over at Laxus, who looked concerned. "Of course. Why do you ask?"

"You stopped walking. Lucy, you've been standing there for almost five minutes." Laxus took a step towards her, reaching out his hand. His fingers brushed against her shoulder before he yanked his arm back, letting it fall at his side. "Anyway, are you ok?"

"I..think so." Lucy touched her hand to her stomach absently. "Just a bad premonition."

"Probably that Damon guy. You can sense him, can't you?"

Lucy snorted. "I guarantee Asuka could; that guy's putting off so much energy its ridiculous."

Laxus seemed to relax a little when she spoke in such a carefree tone. "Alright, then. Let's go."

"Lucy." An unfamiliar voice came suddenly, drawing out the slight 'ss' sound in her name and startling both blondes; they whipped around, only to see a pale man standing there, his arms and clothes covered in blood and softly glinting objects held in his fist.

Laxus shifted slightly into a defensive stance, but Lucy held her arm out to stop him, squinting carefully at the person before her.

"Are you...Ophiuchus?" the blonde woman asked slowly, taking a step forward when the Spirit nodded jerkily. "Why are you here? Where's Yukino - "

She stopped speaking suddenly when Ophiuchus held out his hand and she was able to see what he was holding - keys. "Yukino isss..." he swallowed hard, blinking back tears. "Yukino isss dead. Ssshe killed Asssura...and he killed her."

Lucy held out her hand mechanically, and the Spirit let the keys drop; they clinked softly when they hit her palm. "Libra and Pisces..." she said, voice emotionless.

"Yukino usssed lassst contract. Libra and Pisssces have their jobsss; they will come to you asss sssoon asss thossse jobsss are complete." Ophiuchus laid his hand over top of Lucy's so that the keys were covered completely. "Pleassse take good care of usss."

With that, the Spirit dissolved into nothing, leaving Lucy standing there, still.

Laxus had long since returned to a normal stance, and awkwardly waited a moment for Lucy to collect herself. When five whole minutes had passed, he stepped forward, hesitantly reaching out and touching her shoulder. "I'm sorry." he whispered.

Lucy took a deep breath, but it was shaky when she let it out. "Yeah. Me too."

* * *

Erza's eyes were wide and glistening slightly with tears as she looked between Rogue and Rufus, who were still standing before the dissipating cloud of gold that had been Pisces - in its human Mother/Son form - a moment ago.

Rogue had begun to shake, appearing around his skin almost like steam off of something hot. Cautiously, Rufus unwound Rin's arm's from around his friend's neck and slipped his arms under the girl's lip legs, backing away from the Dragon Slayer as quickly as possible. "Rogue, breath." the blonde man warned, although the grief was also evident in his voice and expression.

Rogue's fists clenched suddenly, and his whole body went taught. "Are you kidding?" he asked, fury lacing his tone. "Lucy's dragon, Sting, Lector, because of Sting, and now Yukino. These...these _demons _are taking away our _family_!"

"Aw, poor baby wost his famiwy." a high-pitched, sarcastic voice giggled off to the small group's right, and everyone's heads whipped in that direction.

"Lilith." Erza said, recognizing the woman from Lucy's description.

The white-haired woman grinned, her red eyes and sharp teeth glinting. "Titania. I've been wanting to fight your ever since we watched you fight those blondes a few days ago."

Erza started to step forward, but Rogue intercepted her, shadows pulsing and whipping around him. "It's a shame that you won't ever get the chance to fight her, woman. Right now, your opponent is me. I _will _avenge my family."

Lilith threw her head back and laughed; perhaps it would have been a pretty sound, if not for the hysterical, cackling undertone. "All-righty, Shadow Boy. Let's go."

"We're leaving this to you, Rogue," Erza grabbed Rufus's shoulder and pushed him forward so that he would begin to walk. "We're going to find our way to the front of the castle and meet up with the reinforcements that should be on their way, according to what Pisces said."

Rufus's jaw tightened as he and Erza hurried away. _Be careful, Rogue..._

* * *

Hisui watched the rest of the Fairy Tail, Sabertooth, and Lamia Scale members storm out of the Hell Palace with a blank expression; she'd experienced death so closely and so often in the past few days that she could hardly even feel the pain that had throbbed dully in her chest since her father had fallen at her feet dead.

"Princess. You should drink this."

Green eyes blinked rapidly before turning their attention to the purple-haired woman kneeling in front of her, holding out a steaming mug. "My name is Kinana." the woman offered quietly, placing the mug in the Hisui's hands and holding them steady as the cup touched the princess's lips and warm tea poured down her throat, burning slightly as it went down. Kinana's hands moved away as the green-haired woman lowered the cup to her lap.

The two woman sat in silence, on their knees across from each other, for a long time. Every now and again, Hisui would take a sip of her tea; if her hands shook then Kinana's would always be there to steady her so that the younger girl wouldn't pour drink on herself. Finally, the princess worked up the nerve to speak.

"I don't want anyone else to die."

Kinana sighed softly. "I do not wish it, either." she replied quietly. "I did not know the Sabertooth members who have died very well, but I feel the grief that my friends do. I have learned from them, too, something important. Do you want to hear it?"

Hisui nodded, eyes locked on Kinana, who smiled sadly to herself.

"No matter how difficult things get, no matter how dark things seem...there is always light. The light will never truly be gone, no matter what; you just have to look for it."

Hisui thought about this a moment. "What is your light, Kinana-chan?"

"His name is Erik." Kinana smiled at Hisui gently. "Always, I hear his encouraging voice in my mind. I love him, you see." The woman hesitated a moment before saying, "Princess? Do you...have a light?"

Hisui's hands tightened around her cup. "I do not know." she admitted. "But...I'm going to look. I'm going to look for my light, Kinana-chan." The princess swayed unsteadily, her mind going fuzzy.

Kinana smiled and leaned forward, taking the cup out of Hisui's hands and easily catching the younger girl so that her head rested on the elder's shoulder. "I was wondering how long the sleeping draught would take." Kinana spoke to herself quietly.

"Sweet dreams, princess."

* * *

**Where did this ending come from? I have no idea; I just feel sappy today. Is anyone looking forward to Rogue vs. Lilith next chapter ****(whenever that is)****? I hope so!**

**Review responses:**

_Darkangel-Luv _\- Thank you for the compliment~ Yeah, Rin is really getting the short end of the stick here, poor girl, and Yukino has sadly passed on... :'( Hopefully, though, things will start getting better from here! There are only a few chapters left!

_Myth Magyk Fae _\- MWAHAHAHAH...just kidding; this is breaking my heart just as much as you guys's, I think. I hope you enjoy the chapter~

_OgaxHilda_ \- Sorry...I hope you like this chapter, though!

**Next Chapter: Rogue vs. Lilith/White Zodiacal Dragon**


	18. Updates 102214

Guys, I'm _so _sorry it's been so long! I swear I'm working on the next chapter and hope to have it uploaded before the week's over! Just so you guys can re-read if you need to, I wanted to post this really quick.

(Also, the title of the next chapter has changed to 'Two Dragons.')

Thanks for you patience,

RayRach2000


	19. Two Dragons

Darkangel-Luv - Thank you! I promise, revenge is nigh!

NastuGrayFanfics: Thanks for following the story! Here's an update for you (Late, but better late than never, right?)

Pengoz: Yeah, it was short. Here's a longer chap, though! (Maybe?)

**So I do realize that this took **_**way **_**longer than it should have, and that Laxus and Lucy have pretty much been looking for Daman forever, and I'm so sorry for both things. After this chapter, there are only four more planned, so you don't have to suffer too much longer...**

* * *

Lilith hit the wall, a small cry escaping her lips as her head cracked against the stone, stars bursting in her vision. With a whimper, she slid to the floor, dazedly looking up and trying to find Rogue. He appeared suddenly in her line of vision, partially shadow with scales lining all of his visible skin. His bright red eyes glowed threateningly as he stalked towards her.

"No!" she shrieked, throwing up her arms. "No, no; leave me alone!"

"Leave you alone?" Rogue asked darkly. "You're companions have murdered my family members. Like hell I'll 'leave you alone.' You deserve to die, just like Asura."

"A...sura?" Lilith froze. "He's dead?"

"He killed my friend Yukino, but she dealt him a fatal blow." Rogue replied, unsympathetically. "I'll send you to hell to join him."

_Yes..._a voice spoke gleefully in Rogue's mind. _Kill her! Kill her!_

Rogue listened without hesitation, the shadows in his right hand forming into a dagger the color of the castle walls, glinting in the light from the chandeliers that hung from the ceiling. Slowly, he lifted his arm and...

"Don't." a soft voice said, the moment fingers with an iron grip wrapped around Rogue's wrist, holding his arm in place. "It's not worth it."

"Gajeel..." Rogue said quietly. "Do not stop me. You do not know what this woman...this demon...is capable of. How many people has she killed? How many deserve vengeance? I do not know, but I do know that Yukino is one of them."

The long-haired man felt an involuntary pang of sympathy for the boy before him."She didn't kill Yukino, Rouge. Asura did, and now he's dead. You need to focus; we have to help those blondes find and kill Daman. _That _is what Yukino would have wanted - for you to ensure the safety of Fiore, not murder a woman who has no chance against you. Don't let that darkness take you over, Rogue. Don't become someone like Asura."

Rogue's red eyes widened and his breath shuddered out in a gasp. Slowly, his fingers loosened until the dagger in his hand fell to the floor, shattering into shadowy fragments when it hit the ground. His muscles loosened and, sensing this, Gajeel released his wrist.

"Making her live with all she's done is enough," the Iron Dragon Slayer said, forming a pair of heavy cuffs in his hands. He attached to one of Lilith's wrists, then forced one into the stone wall. "Now come on. Rufus wants to fight beside you."

* * *

Wendy bent over Rin, her hands hovering over the young girl's body. The Dragon Slayer was having a bit of a difficult time healing because of the fights going on all around her, but Erza had literally begged on her knees for the bluenette to help the injured girl. After around three minutes, Wendy sensed that there was nothing else to mend; Rin's recovery was now in her own hands.

"Warren," the bluenette said, startling the man who was supposed to be keeping an eye on her. "Tell the others that I've done all I can for Rin and get her out of here."

"What if the others need me, though?" the mage protested, though he scooped Rin gently up in his arms.

"Hurry," Wendy replied, glancing over her shoulder at him. "I'm going to go find Lucy-san."

* * *

"Million jewels says Daman is here," Laxus tried to lighten the mood as he and Lucy stood before the two enormous doors, engraved with elaborate pictures of demons out of the book of Zeref, including Deliora and Lullaby.

Lucy did not reply but stood in front of the doors, arms pulled up to her body like she was preparing to shove someone. Her arms - her entire body, really - began to glow with a light that shifted from gold (Celestial Spirit Magic) to white (Sting's power) and black (Ophiuchus) with incredible speed. With no warning, her arms shot forward, blasting the doors off of their hinges.

"That's one way to deal with them," Laxus muttered, following Lucy as she stalked into what was obviously the throne room. In the center, a throne as black as the rest of the castle rose from the floor. A man was seated on the chair, simply watching the two blondes that stalked towards them with amusement.

"Ah, Lucy-san, we meet again." Daman opened his arms as if offering a hug. When Lucy did not move from her spot, he smiled, dropping his arms as he stood. "You have come here with intentions of killing me, yes? Well...good luck."

Neither blonde had time to react before Daman was upon them, his fist connecting solidly with Laxus's chest, throwing the man backwards into a wall with a loud _crash_.

"Lax - ugh!" Lucy cut off abruptly when Daman's kick hit her squarely in the side. For a moment, she did not move, but then her chest constricted and she coughed, blood splashing onto Daman's black robes. With a small laugh, Daman shoved the blonde girl, forcing her backwards until she hit the black throne with a sicking sound.

"Bastard!" Laxus, back on his feet, threw himself at the older man, fist crackling with lightning. "Lighting Dragon's Iron Fist!"

Almost lazily, Daman raised his hand, grabbing Laxus's fist mid air and negating the lightning leaping around the larger man. Lucy, who had pushed herself to her feet, gasped as black light - not shadows, as far as she could tell - bursted from Daman's body' hitting Laxus squarely.

"Demon Slaying Magic." Daman said, wiping his hands off on his robes. "It packs quite a punch, or so I've been told. I've also found that it is more helpful than Dragon Slaying magic when actually slaying a dragon."

Lucy snarled at the dig, letting her powers well up inside her. "Celestial Dragon's Roar!"

Again, with little trouble, Daman raised his arm, this time slicing right through the magic that Lucy sent his way. While he was gloating, Lucy caught a movement out of the corner of her eye, but did her best to ignore it, seeing as how it would probably help her in the long run.

"You will never be able to defeat me," Daman gloated, stalking towards Lucy. "You, a little weakling Dragon Slayer, will not stop Zeref's return!"

"Maybe not _just _me..." Lucy said, and Daman's brows furrowed. "What - "

"Sky Dragon Slayer's - "

"Fire Dragon Slayer's - "

"Iron Dragon Slayer's - "

"Lighting Dragon Slayer's - "

"Shadow Dragon Slayer's - "

"Memory Make - "

"**Roar!" "Slayer's Fury!"**

Lucy dove out of the way as the attacks flew her way, heading straight for Daman. With a deep breath, she added her own, "Celestial Dragon's Roar!"

The seven attacks impacted at exactly the same time - some missed, some hit - creating an explosion that threw Lucy, the closest to it, through the air. She shrieked involuntarily, then grunted when she hit a firm body, arms wrapping around her. The person landed on the ground, legs taking most of the impact.

"Good catch, Lighting," a deep voice said, and Lucy glanced up at Laxus as he sat her down.

"Thanks." she said, grinning at Gajeel - he was the one who had commented - then at Natsu, Wendy, Rogue and Rufus. "Thanks to you guys, as well."

"Don't thank us just yet," Rogue said quietly, nodding to the place where Daman had been standing. He was still there, but half lying on the ground. As they watched, he pushed himself to his feet.

"Well," Daman brushed himself off. "While a few of you hit me, it'd take _all _of you to actually hurt me. It was a good attempt, though."

"We won't be able to beat him like this," Wendy clenched her fists in an uncharacteristic show of frustration and anger.

Lucy glanced at Laxus, absently touching the white streak in her hair. "Maybe...it won't take all of us. Just everyone's powers..."

"What's that mean?" Rogue questioned, not tearing his eyes away from Daman, who was stalking the group quietly, color-changing eyes studying each of them in turn.

Laxus had already caught on. "Blondie, that's dangerous," he warned. "You can't take all of that power; it'll destroy you!"

"That's why it won't just be me!" Lucy threw a grin and Laxus. "It'll be both of us, Sparky." Laxus blinked, but then a grin spread over his face.

"What are you two talking about?" Gajeel asked, snarling at Daman when the man took a step closer.

"I want you guys to do like Sting did; lend Laxus and I your powers." Lucy explained quickly. "I'm around 99% sure we'll be able to give them back."

"I don't know..." Gajeel sounded uneasy. "What if you _can't_?"

"There are ways to extract Dragon Slaying magic from someone's body," Lucy pointed out. "Otherwise, Laxus wouldn't be a Dragon Slayer."

"Pretty sure that method involves death, though," Laxus piped up. "For the person it's being extracted from, that is."

"Well, I'm going to die in a few months anyway." Lucy cringed along with the others at her brash tone. "Anyone's who's terribly worried, give your powers to me. If you trust us, give them to Laxus."

"I'm giving my powers to Luce," Natsu piped up. "Not because I don't trust you, but because once my partner, always my partner." He grinned at the blonde.

"I'll give my power to Lucy-san, as well." Wendy nodded. "If Rogue-san and Gajeel-san give their powers to Laxus, it would work out as evenly as we can manage."

Rufus stepped forward. "I'll keep Daman occupied. Work quickly, you guys!" With that, the blonde man lunged forward, towards Daman.

"Quickly!" Lucy grabbed Natsu and Wendy's hands while Gajeel and Rogue put their hands on Laxus's shoulders. "We don't have a lot of time before Rufus..."

"Got it." the four Dragon Slayers transferring their magic echoed, closing their eyes.

Lucy gasped as Natsu's and Wendy's chests began to glow red and blue, respectively. The glow moved slowly from their chest to their arms, then slowly down towards their wrists. The blonde was tempted to let go, but the instant the glows touched her fingers, Wendy and Natsu drooped with exhaustion. The glow traveling up Lucy's arms left her warm all over, and she felt as if a fire had started in her chest when the powers already their mixed with the power she'd just received. She felt...unstoppable. One glance at Laxus, who'd gone through something similar, told her he'd felt the same.

"Thank you, you two." Lucy touched Natsu and Wendy's faces tenderly. "I need you two to get Rogue and Gajeel and get out of the way. I'll send Rufus your way to protect you."

Natsu smiled a little tiredly. "I can still take care of myself." he said, backing away even as he did so.

"Good luck, Lucy-san." Wendy threw her arms around the elder girl's waist. "Please come back to us!"

"AAARGH!"

Lucy's head jerked around at Rufus's scream, to see that he had been burned by the black light from Daman's attack, which had also thrown him closer to the Dragon Slayers.

"Natsu, get him and go!" Lucy ordered, leaping in front of Rufus before Daman could attack again. "Laxus, get here, _now_!"

He was at her side before she could even take another breath, grabbing her hand as Daman stalked closer, ready for the kill. "Let's do this, Blondie."

"You got it, Sparky."

The two didn't know how, but as they gathered their powers inside them, a spell sprang into their minds, prompting them to speak...

"_**In this fateful hour,**_

_**We call upon all Heaven with its power,**_

_**And the sun with its brightness,**_

_**...**_

_**And the fire with all the strength it hath,**_

_**And the lightning with its rapid wrath,**_

_**And the wind with its swiftness along its path,**_

_**And the **__**rocks**_ _**with their steepness,**_

_**And the **__**Earth**_ _**with its starkness**_

_**All these we place**_

_**...**_

_**Between ourselves and the powers of darkness...**_

_**DRAGON'S VENGEANCE!"**_

* * *

**[End Chapter]**

Yes it took forever, and I'm _so so so so so so so so so __**so **_sorry! I'll try to get the next one up sooner!

(((Spell used is actually an ancient rune that is supposed to ward off evil. Here's the entire thing:

At Tara in this fateful hour,

I place all Heaven with its power,

And the sun with its brightness,

And the snow with its whiteness,

And the fire with all the strength it hath,

And the lightning with its rapid wrath,

And the wind with its swiftness along its path,

And the sea with its deepness,

And the rocks with their steepness,

And the Earth with its starkness

All these I place

By God's almighty help and grace

Between myself and the powers of darkness)))

About the spell in the story's context: Heaven is Lucy's Celestial Powers (both as a Celestial Spirit Mage and Dragon Slayer, the sun's brightness is Sting's power, fire is Natsu, lightning is Laxus, wind is Wendy, earth is Gajeel and Rogue. Darkness is Daman.


	20. Draco and Cygnus

**WARNING: YAOI (it's just a kiss so it's not **_**that **_**bad) AND SHORT CHAPTER. **

**Meister Anonymous****: I'm so sorry! I'm also going to apologize in advance for this short chapter...**

* * *

Lucy felt absolutely drained as she half collapsed against Laxus, who was putting some of his weight on her, as well. She didn't know how, but the two of them somehow kept each other up as the dust in the room swirled, leaving them blind.

"God, I hope that did it, or we're done for," Laxus murmurred.

Finally, the dust settled, and Lucy paled. "Where is he?" she asked aloud, looking around. The two blonde's Unison Raid had completely destroyed the back wall of the room, leaving it open to the late afternoon air. Rubble that had once been the throne in the middle of the room - or perhaps part of the walls, since it was all the same material - were scattered about, little bits of stone raining from the ceiling.

"Gone," Laxus replied. "He's gone."

"Gone dead, or gone ran away?"

"If he's not dead, he's close to it," Laxus put his hand on Lucy's shoulder and turned their two bodies until they were facing each other, her looking up to his face. "We did it, Blondie. No..it was you. _You _did it."

Lucy felt a sudden tug in her chest, right before a voice near them said, "He's very right, old friend." Both blondes turned their heads to see the Celestial Spirit King - in human size - standing there smiling proudly at Lucy. "Estrella-san would be very proud of you."

Lucy smiled, a little sadly. "Thank you, Spirit King. But...why are you here?"

"For two reasons, old friend. Firstly, I've come to warn you that, with Daman gone, this castle will soon crumbled to the ground. I have sent messengers to evacuate the rest of your friends and dispatch the goons Daman hired. Secondly, I have come to give you these." The King reached into his pocket and pulled out two keys, both silver.

"Cygnus?" Lucy started, recognizing one of the keys and putting her hand on her keyring, which now held Yukino's keys. "She was Yukino's, though."

"She came straight to me after Yukino's death." the Spirit King's voice became quite sad when he spoke of the former mage. "You see, all of...ah, well, I'll just let you open the gates and see for yourself." He held the keys out to Lucy, who took them. When she saw the symbol on the second key, she gasped.

"Draco," she whispered. "Draco..the Dragon!"

"Dragon?" Laxus asked.

"Lucy!"

The two blondes glanced over their shoulders to see the Dragon Slayers plus Rufus that they had just sent away rushing back into the room. Natsu had called out to Lucy, and Rogue did so next as the group stopped near their two friends.

"We wanted to come find you, since we were warned the castle would collapse." the dark haired mage stated.

"We weren't worried, though," Gajeel _tsk_ed, although everyone saw the relief in his eyes that the two were okay.

"Yeah," Laxus rolled his eyes. "While everyone's here, though, take back your magic. It's getting annoying, having it all bouncing around."

The Spirit King smiled. "I will go back to my world, old friend. Once you have returned your friends' magic, leave this castle and go back to the rest. Only then should you open the gates of the two keys you hold. I promise you...you will want to do it as soon as you are able."

* * *

_Ballroom of Crocus' Castle, One Hour Later_

"I'm so glad you're okay," Lucy immediately threw her arms around a still-weak-but-recovering Rin. "We didn't mean to put you in such danger."

"It's fine," Rin smiled. "It was an adventure. Erza-san and Wendy-san took good care of me."

Someone from a few feet away called for Rin, who shot another grin at the group before moving off, pushing through the crowd to get to her own guild.

"Are you going to open them now?" Rogue asked, nodding to the keys that Lucy had not let go of since receiving them. "The Spirit King sounded pretty serious."

Lucy glanced at the keys, then sighed. "Might as well." she said. "Laxus, Natsu, can you get everyone to move back a little?"

The two Dragon Slayers immediately did as they were asked, drawing most all of the attention in the room to the blonde woman.

"Open, Gates of the Swan and Dragon! Cygnus, Draco!"

As Lucy poured her magic into the keys and felt their response, she gasped. Their magics...were so familiar. Her brown eyes locked onto the shimmering figures that appeared, and she nearly hit her knees when they came into clear relief.

Any conversation that hadn't stopped did, and the only person who spoke was Rogue.

"Sting...Yukino."

Indeed, the Dragon Slayer was right, for the blonde man dressed in his normal attire turned towards him with his signature grin. "'Sup, Rogue?"

Yukino - dressed in all white with bracelets and anklets with wings on them - shot a smile at her former guildmates, but had eyes mostly for Lucy, who was still shell-shocked.

"The legends are true, Lucy," the pale-haired woman spoke. "Spirits are simply the souls of humans that have passed, and, every so often, the spirit of a human takes the Spirit's place to allow them to finally move on and be reincarnated. Cygnus - I mean, the me before me - begged the Spirit King to let me to take her place, and I begged for Sting. Draco stepped forward and offered to let Sting take his place, and now...well..."

With a small sob, Lucy threw herself forward, grabbing Yukino and pulling her into a bonecrushing hug. Sting watched with amusement until Laxus, with a roll of his eyes, shoved him, Rogue, Rufus, and Orga all into the mix, creating a group hug of epic proportions.

"You idiots!" Lucy wailed at the two former Sabertooth mages, as the hug broke up. "If you weren't my Spirits I'd beat you to a pulp for not telling me sooner!"

"Well, we've only been Spirits for a few hours Earthland time." Sting made an excuse, Rouge hitting him roughly on the shoulder. "Not an excuse." the dark-haired mage growled.

"It's true, though," Yukino said. "We're very young and quite weak. In fact, we should probably return to the Spirit World for right now to gather our strength."

"We can't forget our gift, though!" Sting threw an arm around Yukino's shoulders, and both grinned at the puzzled blonde standing before them.

"Gift? Oh, you didn't have to get me anything - "

"We're taking this away," Sting reached out and touched Lucy's temple, where the little white tattoo was drawn on her skin. "Lucy, you're freed of the payment you owe."

Gasps went up all around as the tattoo dissolved under Sting's fingertips, and Lucy's' eyes watered. "How - ?" she croaked.

Sting smiled and dropped his hand away from her face."All of the mages who have been in the same circumstance ultimately made the decision to kill themselves before the effects of casting _Deux lux Mea _settled in. You, however, threw away what you had to achieve death, and, in fact, all thoughts of killing yourself when tragedy struck. Thus, the Spirit King has decided to let you continue on with your friends."

"Lucy, Lucy!" the blonde jumped when the soft cry reached her, and, with surprise, she turned to see Krys flying towards her; a little unsteadily, yes, but flying. Lucy put her arms out for the cat, who landed on her chest a moment later, snuggling into the blonde's neck.

"This is your gift from the heavens, Lucy-sama." Yukino smiled gently. "Please do not waste it."

The two new Spirits began to shimmer and disappear, but Sting was not quite finished saying what he needed to. "Hey, Rufus," he called to the other blonde, who paled when Sting gave him a knowing smirk. "If you wait too long, your opportunity will be gone."

The Memory Make mage blushed bright red, but made a rude gesture at Sting, who just laughed as he disappeared completely.

"So..." Erza said uneasily in the silence. "Is this a happy ending?"

With no warning, Rufus, still blushing madly, threw himself at Rogue, arms going around the - slightly - taller man's neck and making their lips crash together. Wendy squeaked in embarrassment and covered her eyes, Orga fell over in shock, and pretty much everyone else's jaw hit the floor as Rogue kissed the blonde man back, but Lucy just smiled.

"Now it is."

* * *

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**So...two surprises! Yukino and Sting are not technically dead, and Rufus and Rogue are a thing. I have seriously been planning this chapter forever, and, while I'm not so happy with my writing skills and the length of the chapter, I'm sorta happy with how it came out! I know I said there would be a few more chapters, but the next chapter will be the last. I hope you're looking forward to it!**


	21. Years Passed (Epilogue)

_**Three Years Later**_

"I still don't see _why _we invited them." Lucy huffed, crossing her arms and grunting as Erza and Lisanna worked together to tighten her corset. "They eloped! I wanted to be at _their _wedding!"

"You know that those two would have shown up anyway," Yukino - no one could bring themselves to call her Cygnus, even after three years - laughed, tickling the blonde's face with an empty brush. "They've been down ever since you decided to move back to Fairy Tail."

"Yeah, well, they've got each other _and _the mastership of Sabertooth." Lucy scrunched her nose up and blew at the brush to get it away from her face.

"It's quite interesting how they decided to share the title of Master." Erza commented, as she and Lisanna got to the bottom of the corset.

"I think it's fitting." Lisanna smiled as the tied the laces of Lucy's white dress snugly, tucking them into the rest of the fabric to hide them. "Not only are they the first same sex couple in Fiore, but they're the first co-Masters of a guild. It's also wonderful how Sabertooth is so proud of them; the guild hasn't lost a single member since their marriage."

"They've gained members, actually," Yukino said, happily. "Sting is so proud that he never shuts up. Sometimes Loke looks like he wants to slap him."

"A lot has changed here, but also in the Spirit World," Lucy finally relented. "Yukino, you're so much more outgoing, and Sting has mellowed. It's quite incredible."

"Glad to see you're perking up." Levy stepped out of the bathroom, holding the back of her bridesmaid dress closed.

"Let me get that, Levy-san," Wendy hopped up and walked over to the bluenette, zipping up her dress. "There."

"That's everyone, then," Lucy turned to face her bridesmaids. Yukino, Erza, Lisanna, Levy, and Wendy smiled back at her, all looking beautiful in their soft gray dresses, which were not unlike the groom's eyes. Their counterpart, the groomsmen (Sting, Jellal, Natsu, Gajeel, and Romeo), were wearing black and white suits with ties of the same color. Laxus was beyond embarrassed that the color scheme revolved around him, but had been told in no uncertain terms by the bridesmaids to get over it, since it made Lucy happy.

Absently, the blonde touched the inside of her wrist. She had gotten a permanent tattoo of Sabertooth's mark there, since her Fairy Tail mark was once again on her hand. She had taken to rubbing the tattoo whenever she was nervous, since it had been protection for her during her hiatus from Fairy Tail.

"Don't be nervous, Lu-chan." Levy noticed immediately, like always. "We're all here. Now that Rufus and Rogue are here, everything's complete. The family is all together."

"Yeah..." Lucy smiled at her bridesmaids, then opened up her arms to initiate a big group hug. "We all are."

* * *

The wedding between Lucy Heartfilia of Fairy Tail, a former heiress, and Laxus Dreyar, the master of Fairy Tail, was one to remember. Every guild in a hundred kilometer radius turned up, plus the queen, Hisui, and her fiance, the king-to-be who hailed from the country to the east of Fiore. All twelve of the Zodiac gates attended, plus the Celestial Spirit king, who brought most of the silver gates along.

Of course Fairy Tail knew how to throw a party, but when you mixed in heavenly beings _and _Sabertooth...well, the celebration lasted for nearly a month; long enough for Laxus and Lucy to have their honeymoon, come back, and announce that they were expecting a child in the next seven months. _That _sparked another party. _Then _came the marriages of Jellal and Erza, Gray and Juvia, and Levy and Gajeel in the next eighteen months. Basically, life at Fairy Tail was one huge party for three years...

And not one person would have it any other way.

* * *

**Well...this is it. It's not the grand ending I wanted, but...I'm happy. Not only is this my favorite thing I've ever written, it's the first fic I've ever completely finished. I had plenty of ups and downs, plenty of times I just wanted to quit, but all of you encouraged me and made me want to keep writing. If it wasn't for all you, No Regrets never would have happened. I am thankful for every single one of you who has followed this story, favorited, commented, or just read. I love you.**

**~RayRach2000**


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